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HAEMONY 


SCIENCE  AND  REfEUTION, 


RIGHT    REV.    J.    DE    CONCILIO,    D.    D. 

DOMESTIC    PRELATE    OP    HIS    HOLINESS, 
RECTOR   OF    ST.    MICHAEL's    CHURCH,   JERSEY    CITY,    N.    J. 


AUTHOR   OF    "catholicity   AND     PANTHEISM,"     '    -HE     KNOWLEDGE     OF     MARY 
"  INTELLICTUAL   rHILOROPHY,"    ETC.,    ETC. 


v>^^.. 


FR.  PUSTET, 

Printer  to  the  Holy  See  and  the  S.  ConRrepation  of  Ritos. 

FR.    PTJSTET    &    CO., 

New  York  &  Cincinnati. 


THE  ABBEY  OF 


6 


llinprimatur : 

^  MICHAEL  A.  COERIGAN, 

Archbishop  of  New  York. 

LOAN  STACK  i 


Copyright 

BY 

Right  Rev.  de  Concilio,  li 


DEDICATION 

Cardinal  of  (he  Holy  Roman  Church, 
Archbishop  of  Baltimore, 

la  his  whole  life,  iu  all  his  words  and  actions 

A  liviDg  realizdtioa  and  paUern 

Of  that  happy  blending  aid  harmony  which  ought  to  exist  betweeu 

The  Natural  and  the  Sapernatural, 

The  Man  and  the  Christian. 

The  Ch'.z  a  and  the  Churchman, 

In  acknowledsmen  .  of  such  rare  and  beneficial  characteristx-, 

As  a  Token  of  Kpspect  aod  V-neratiou 

These  Pugts 

Are  Humbly  Ilsc  ibed  by 

THE     AUTHOR. 


949 


CONTEiSTS. 


Akticle.  Page 

First. — lutroducto  y 5 

Second —Herbert  Spencer's   Tlieory  Concerning  Matter— Its  Refata- 

tion 1"J 

Third.— Modern  Science  Proves  That  Matter  Must  Have  Been  Created...        16 
Fourth.— Idea  of  Self  Existence— Did  Christians  Ever  Understand  Wh^t 

They  Meant  by  God?— Compliments  of  Herbert  Spencer..        21 
Fifth. — rormation  of  the  I'niverse— Beautiful  Hypotbeiii  of  La  Place..        2S 

Sixth —True  Side  of  the  System  of  Evolution _        34 

Seventh.— History  of  the  Formation  of  the  Earth 39 

Eighth.— Spontaneous  Generation  or  Evolution  in  i:s  General  Sense...        44 

Nimh.— Evolution  ""n  I(s  General  Sense— Verdict  of  Eeason 50 

Tenth.— Were  All  Living  Beings  Evolved  From  the  Lowest  Form  of 
Life,  or  Was  Each  Species  of  Ihe  Vegetable  and  Animal 
World  Effected  by  a  Special  Act  of  the  Creator  ?—Trans- 
formism  and  Darwinism— What  is  a  Species?— Can  a  Spe- 
cies be  Distinguishable  From  Another? 56 

Eleventh.— Evolutionism  is  Contradicted  by  History G:5 

Twelfth.— Evolution  in  Contradiction  With  Paleontology 69 

Thirteenth.— Does  Paleontology  Show  Any  Substantial  Change  Ever  to 

Have  Taken  Place  in  Species? 75 

Fourteenth.— Paleontology  Demonstrates  That  Species  Have  Not  Been 
Progressing  Gradually  Towards  Perfection— It  Af- 
fords No  Traces  of  Intermediary  Species 81 

Fifteenth.-  Is  the  Science  of  Embryology  in  Favor  of  Evolution  ? 88 

Sixteenth. — Arc  Rudimentary  Organs  Any  He.'p  to  Evolution 94 

Seventeenth. — Are  the  lleasons  Drawn  From  Classification,  Mo  phology. 
Anatomy,  and  Pathology  in  Favor '  f  Organic  Evolu 

tion  of  Any  Real  Value? 101 

Eighteenth.— What  is  a  Sciertifc  Fxplanation? 10!) 

Nineteenth.— Is  the  Evolutionists'  Explanation  of  the  Facts  From  Mor- 
phology,  Anatomy  and  Pathology  Reasonable  and 

Satisfactor,  ? 114 

Twentieth.— Origin  of  Man 122 

Twenty- First  —Intelligence  as  the  Exclusive  Faculty  of  Mzn- Facul 
ties  Common  to  Man  and  Brute  Animals — Differ- 
ence Between  the  Eenseand  the  Intellect r2".> 

Twenty-Second. — Are  Brute  Animals  Endowed  With  Any  So:t  cf  In- 

lelifct^ 133 


IV  CONTENTS. 

Twenty-Third— The  Exclusive  Cign  of  I itelligence. ..  147 

Twenty-Fourth.—Ts  It  a  Safe  Opinion  to  Hold  Tha";  Man's  Body  Was 

Evolved  From  1  he  -Ape? 150 

Twenty-^ifth.— Has  Mivnrt's  Opinion  Ary  Theological  Groucds  In  Its 

Support? ]f)'> 

Tvrenty-Sixth.— Is  Mirar^'s  Opinioa  Scientifically  and  Phllosophically 

Te-able? \  173 

Twenty- Seventh.— Is  Mm  as  Old  as  a  Certain  Science  Would  Make 

Him  Out  to  Ee? ISO 

Twentj-Eighth  — Is  There  Such  a  Thing  £s  the  Fossil  Remains  cf  Man  ?  1S7 

Twenty-Ninth.— Is  Civilized  Man  the  Natural  Product  of  'ihe  Sava-c?...  193 
Thirtieth, — Maa'a  Place  In  the  ITniverse— Are  Other  Worlds  ThanOurs 

Inhabited? 201 

Thirty-First. — Scientific  and  i  hilosophi' al  Reasons  for  tho  Plurality  of 

Worlds.... 207 

Thirty-Secand.  — Philosophical  Proofs  for  the  Piu-ality  of  V.'rrVIs 214 

Thirty-Third. — "  hilosoph'cal  Argument  for  t  o  Plurality  cf  W  rids 2-M 

Thirty  Fourth.— The  Plurality  of  Worlds  in  Harmony  With  Christian 

RtvclatioH 227 

Thirty-Fifth.— What  lic  Miracle? 233 

Thirty-Sixth— Is  (he  Miracle  Possible? 240 

Thirty-Seventh —Can  a  Miracle  be  Ascertained? 246 

Thirty-Eighth.— Has  a  Miracle  Ever  Been  Ascertained? 253 


HARMONY  BETWEEN  SCIENCE  AND  REVELATION. 


FIRST  ARTICLE. 

INTRODUCTOBY. 

We  will  ia  a  few  words  introduce  the  persons  who  are  to  take 
part  in  the  dialogue. 

The  first  ia  B.  Armstrong.  He  is  an  old  doctor  of  medicine, 
retired  from  the  prictice  of  his  profession,  in  which  he  stands  very 
high.  A  convert  to  the  Catholic  Church  since  his  early  manhood,  he 
loves  her  With  the  ardent  zeal  of  a  convert,  but  much  more  with  the 
nrm  and  settled  conviction  of  one  who  has  studied  her  doctrines  long 
and  pro  ion  ndi^,  and  Has  compared  tliexn  with  the  results  of  modern 
science,  in  which  he  is  u  very  greal  aoe^^it. 

The  next  in  r-ink  is  George  N.,  a  young  physician  himselt,  nnd  a 
son  of  one  of  the  most  intima'e  friends  of  the  old  doctor.  He  is  a  fre- 
quent visitor  at  the  latter's  hons',  drawn  there  not  only  by  the  evi- 
dent advantages  and  improvement  he  derives  from  the  doctor's  con- 
versation, but  also  by  the  attr.sctione  of  the  third  personage  of  our 
dialogue,  A  dele  M. 

She  ia  a  niece  and  a  ward  of  the  doctor— the  very  apple  of  his  eye. 
She  is  well  educated,  of  a  serious  turn  of  mind,  which  does  not  inter- 
fere with  the  liveliness  and  cheerfulness  of  her  disposition. 

The  three  personages  are  sitting  cosily  around  the  table  after  tea. 


Doctor.— "Yoa  may  go  on,  George,  with  the  subject.  Adele  will 
ne  pleased  with  the  matter  of  our  conversation." 

George. — "Well,  Miss  Adele,  the  Doctor  and  I  were  discussing 
before  tea  the  great  topic  of  the  relations  between  religion  and  science. 
I  need  not  remind  you  that  the  professors  of  the  latter,  as  a  general 
tbiop,  claim  that  the  results  of  their  science  are  in  direct  contradic- 
tion, ia  hopeles?  conflict  with  the  tenets  of  revelation  ;  that  some  day 
or  other  Christianity,  the  best  and  greatest  exponent  of  revelation, 
will  have  to  submit  to  the  inevitable,  and  retire,  either  gracefully  or 
by  force,  to  make  way  for  the  great  truths  of  science.  This  boast  has 
been  made  so  often  and  so  persistently ;  it  has  been  repeated  over  and 


over  again  with  such  appearance  of  earnestness  and  conviction;  it  has 
been  proclaimed  with  such  assurance,  that  a  great  number  have  taken 
the  bait  and  believe  really  and  truly  that  modern  science  has  settled 
religion,  and  that  there  is  nothing  for  the  latter  to  do  but  to  give  up. 
Now  the  doctor  was  laughing  at,  such  unwarrantable  pretensions,  and, 
being  fully  conversant  with  the  true  results  of  science,  he  is  fully  con- 
vinced that  no  conflict  or  opposition  exists  or  can  exist  between  them 
and  revelation.  But  I  was  complaining  of  a  real  want  in  this  matter 
when  we  were  interrupted  by  the  tea  bell." 

Adele.— "Well,  out  with  it;  ihere  is  nothing  to  interrupt  us  now, 
and  we  can  do  full  jusiice  to  the  subject." 

George. — "It  is  very  well  to  say  that  an  educated  man,  one  fully 
conversant  with  his  religion  and  very  well  up  in  science,  can  easily 
find  out  that  there  is  no  opposition  between  the  well  ascertained  and 
established  results  of  science,  and  the  real,  not  imaginary,  tenets  of  our 
holy  religion.  But  how  is  a  poor,  unsophisticated  man— say  a 
mechanic,  a  laborer,  even  a  washerwoman — to  find  that  out?  The 
assertion  that  science  has  disposed  of  religion,  that  the  latter  is  only 
good  for  the  ignorant  and  the  uneducated  crowd,  will  continue  to  be 
made  by  conceited  and  unscrupulous  scientists,  either  because  they 
are  dupes  themselves  or  because  they  would  dupe  others,  or  because, 
as  a  general  thing,  they  know  nothing  at  all  of  true  religious  doctrines  ; 
I  say  the  assertion  will  continue  to  be  made  ;  and  how  are  the  people 
to  be  preserved  from  and  guaranteed  against  such  wholesale  lying  and 
deceit  ?  What  I  would  wish  is  a  clear,  plain  answer  to  this,  couched 
in  such  simple  language  as  to  be  within  the  reach  of  every  one  at 
least  who  has  had  a  common  school  education.  Science  boasts  of 
having,  by  its  wonderful  results,  disposed  of  religion.  Well,  let  every 
plain  man  and  woman  be  so  instructed  as  lo  be  enabled  to  cast  that 
false  assertion  in  the  teeth  of  those  who  make  it." 

Adele.— "That  is  an  excellent  idea;  many  a  time  I  have  desired 
such  a  plain,  simple  answer  to  assertions  so  vague  and  so  sweeping." 
Doctor— "The  answer  exists ;  it  has  been  given  thousands  of  times 
-  by  our  apologists;  perhaps  not  always  in  as  plain  language  as  one 
would  wish,  but  it  has  been  given  and  can  be  found  in  hundreds  of 
books.  All  we  have  to  do  is  to  put  it  in  a  plain,  simple,  forcible 
language." 

George. — "Well,  Doctor,  why  don't  you  attempt  it?  I  am  sure 
Miss  Adele  and  I  will  listen  to  you  with  the  greatest  possible  atten- 
tion, and  I  am  sure  we  shall  be  greatly  benefited  by  it." 

Doctor— "I  will  try,  and,  to  begin  at  once,  I  will  remark  that  there 
are  two  ways  of  meeting  the  objection  that  religion  and  science  con- 
flict against  eich  other— that  they  are  antagonifctic  and  opponents— 
the  first  is  an  indirect  way ;  the  other  is  the  direct  way." 


Adele.— "Well,  uncle,  let  ua  begin  by  the  indi'-^ct  answer." 
Doctor.— "The  indirect  way  is  this:  to  Bhow  that  science  and  reve- 
lation are  two  distinct  ways,  which  God   Almighty  has  adopted  to 
teach  and  instruct  mau,  and  to  manifest  to  him  His  infinite  perfection 
and  attributes." 

George. — "Must  we  start  from  that  ?" 

Doctor. — "Yes,  sir ;  we  must  start  from  that.  Any  other  way  is 
worse  than  useless.  If  one  does  not  admit  the  existence  of  an  infinite 
beneficent  Being  who,  out  of  the  excessive  goodness  of  His  nature,  de- 
termines to  manifest  Himself  to  intelligent  creatures,  whom  He  has 
Himself  created  ;  that  He  has  chosen  two  ways  of  making  such  mani- 
festation, the  first  by  expressing  and  imaging  Himself  in  the  universe, 
and  letting  man  discover  His  perfections  by  studying  and  investi- 
gating the  wonders  of  creation;  the  other,  by  condescending  to  put 
Himself  in  real,  true  personal  communication  with  man,  to  reveal  to 
him  grander,  more  sublime,  more  magnificent  things  about  himself 
and  his  nature;  I  say,  if  one  does  not  admit  these  two  wayn,  it  were 
wor.-e  than  useless  to  speak  of  the  accord  or  disaccord  between  science 
and  religion,  because  in  such  supposition  the  disputants  are  not 
agreed  upon  the  terms  of  the  discussion,  and  necessarily,  by  the  nature 
of  the  case,  cannot  understand  each  other." 

Adele.— "Let  me  see  if  I  understand  it.  God  is  infinite,  unutter- 
able beauty  and  loveliness.  He  wants  to  manifest  that  beauty  to 
inteiligent  creatures.  To  attain  this  object  He  creates  the  universe,  in 
which  He  expresses,  as  well  as  could  be  done,  His  everlasting  fairness 
and  beauty.  But  He  is  not  satisfied  with  that.  That  expression  acd 
imaging  of  His  infinite  perfections  is  too  faint  and  feeble.  He  estab- 
lishes a  personal  intercourse  with  man,  and  in  that  intercourse  He 
Himself  reveals  more  and  more  of  those  infinite  realms  of  beauty  and 
lT)veliness  which  are  hid  in  His  nature.  Is  that  what  you  mean, 
uncle?" 

Doctor. — "Yes;  only,  with  your  woman's  taste  and  gracefulness, 
yru  havetput  it  in  a  much  better  language  than  I  did." 
Adele. — "No  compliments,  iincle." 

George. — "But,  excuse  me,  Doctor,  if  I  insist  on  this  point.  Your 
explanation  supposes  the  possibility  and  existence  of  a  real  personal 
intercourse  between  God  and  man,  as  you  maintain  that  God  has 
revealed  Himself  in  two  ways:  the  first,  in  creation  in  all  the  beautiful 
world  He  has  made  ;  the  second  is  by  revealing  the  treasures  of  per- 
fections hid  in  His  nature  by  a  personal  intercourse,  which  He  has 
established  with  man.  Now,  scientists  are  not  prepared  to  grant  you 
this  second  way,  for  it  assumes  the  possibility  and  the  existence  of  the 
3upernatural." 

Doctor— *'0f  course  it  does;  and  your  scienlisfs  must  assume  that. 


unless  they  want  to  exhibit  in  the  highest  degree  the  lack  of  that 
logic  in  which  they  are  generally  so  deficient  in  their  works.  Our 
whole  discussion  turns  upon  this — is  there  any  conflict  between 
science  and  revelation  ?  Surely,  before  saying  whether  there  be  any 
such  conflict  we  should  agree  upon  knowing  what  is  science  and  what 
is  revelation.  We  are  pretty  well  satisfied  what  is  meant  by  science. 
We  should  equally  as  well  understand  what  is  revelation,  otherwise 
how  could  we  by  any  possibility  tell  whether  there  can  be,  or  is,  any 
opposition  between  two  things,  one  cf  which  we  know  nothing  of  ? 
Hence,  in  the  beginning  of  the  discussion,  we  must  necessarily  assume 
the  idea  of  the  possibility  and  existence  of  a  supernatural  intercourse 
between  God  and  man,  in  consequence  of  which  revelation  takes 
place;  elss  the  discussion  is  absurd.  The  time  will  come  when  in  the 
courte  of  our  conversations  we  will  ascertain  the  philosophical  foun- 
dation for  the  truth  of  this  supernatural  intercourse  between  God  and 
man.     At  present  we  must  necessarily  take'it  for  granted." 

George. — "If  I  catch  your  meaning,  every  time  I  am  attacked 
upon  the  disagreement  and  conflict  between  reason  and  revelation, 
science  and  religion,  I  am  lo  keep  perfectly  cool  and  say  :  'Gentlemen, 
if  you  please,  we  will  first  try  to  understand  what  is  meant  by  religion 
and  science;  and  afterward,  we  will  at  our  own  leisure  ascertain 
whether  there  be  any  conflict  or  harmony  between  them,  whether 
they  agree  or  disagree.' " 

Doctor. — "Certainly,  that  is  the  way ;  and  don't  for  the  world  al- 
low any  one  to  carry  you  away  to  some  other  question  or  issue,  which 
may  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  matter.  What  is  science  ?  What  is 
religion "  These  are  the  two  first  important  points  to  be  understood 
and  agreed  upon  by  the  disputants ;  and  when  those  terms  are  under- 
stood and  their  full  meaning  settled  upon,  it  will  be  time  enough  to 
ascertain  whether  they  agree  or  disagree." 

Adele. — "But,  uncle,  why  do  you  attach  so  much  importance  to 
that  ?" 

.  Doctor.— "Because,  if  the  disputants  have  the  right  idea  pf  science 
and  religion  they  can  in  a  moment  agree  as  to  the  accord  or  disaccord 
between  them.  If  they  have  no  such  right  idea  they  are  throwing 
away  valuable  time." 

Adele. — "Well,  now  suppose  that  the  disputants  have  the  right 
idea  of  science  and  religion,  will  you  tell  us  how  they  can  decide  in  a 
moment  as  to  the  agreement  or  coriflict  between  them?" 

Doctor. — "Will  you  please  to  repeat  what  is  meant  by  science  and 
Avhat  by  the  Christian  revelation  ?" 

Adele — "By  science  we  understand  that  knowledge  of  God  which 
we  acquire  by  the  study  of  His  creatures.  By  such  study  we  arise  to 
the  knowledge  of  the  Creator  and  of  that  manifestation  which  He 


9 

made  of  Hiniself  in  the  universe.  By  the  Ciiristian  revelation  we  mean 
that  knowleiige  of  God's  nature  and  perfpctions  which  was  imparted 
by  God  Himself,  by  a  personal  communication  with  man." 

Doctor. — "Very  good,  indeed  ;  then  it  is  as  clear  as  that  two  and 
two  make  four  that  science  and  revelation  can  never  conflict  with  each 
other." 

Adele.— "Why  ?" 

Doctor, — "BecauHe  it  is  evident  to  the  dullest  mind  that  when 
God,  by  a  personal  intercourse  which  He  establishes  with  man,  reveals 
to  the  latter  more  and  more  of  His  own  perfections,  surely  such  addi- 
tional and  superior  information  cannot,  in  any  sense,  be  supposed  to 
be  in  conflict  with  the  previous  information  about  God,  which  man 
had  acquired  by  the  study  of  God's  creatures  ;  because  in  such  a  sup- 
position the  contradiction  would  fall  on  God.  In  nature  and  the 
universe  God  would  image  and  portray  Himself  in  one  way,  and  in  the 
personal  intercourse  He  would  reveal  things  about  Himself  conflicting 
and  contradictory  to  the  first.  Could  there  be  anything  more  absurd 
than  this?  Hence  the  plainest  man  has  the  answer  to  the  question 
we  are  discussing,  whether  there  be  any  conflict  between  science  and 
revelation.  He  has  to  put  the  following  questions  to  whomsoever  may 
attack  him  :  Do  you  admit  that  science  means  the  knowledge  of  that 
manifestation  which  God  has  made  of  Himself  and  of  His  perfections 
in  the  universe,  and  of  all  which  is  contained  in  it  ?  Do  you  grant 
that  revelation  means  that  knowledge  of  Himself  and  of  His  perfec- 
tions which  God  has  made  personally  to  man  and  which  the  uni- 
verse could  not  impart  ?  If  you  do,  it  is  evident  that  these  two  mani- 
festations, distinct  though  they  be,  cannot  in  any  sense  conflict  with 
each  other;  else  God  Almighty  would  contradict  it  Himself." 

Adele.— "But  suppose,  uncle,  that  some  statement  of  science  or 
some  new  discovery  should  appear  to  contradict  a  truth  or  tenet  of  re- 
ligion, what  is  one  to  do  then  ?" 

Doctor. — "Why,  do  nothing  at  all.  What  would  you  want  him  to 
do?" 

Adele. — "I  mean,  how  is  one  to  satisfy  his  mind  ?" 

Doctor. — "You  have  already  given  your  answer  in  that  word 
appear,  for  it  can  be  nothing  more  than  appearance.  If  the  universe  be 
really  a  manifestation  of  God  in  His  creatures,  and  if  religion  be  really 
that  manifestation  of  God  which  He  Himself  makes  to  man  in  a  per- 
sonal communication,  how  in  the  name  of  common  sense  can  any 
real  discovery  of  science  be  in  conflict  with  a  truth  of  religion  ?  God 
in  that  case  would  assert  one  thing  of  Himself  in  the  universe,  and 
then  He  Himself  flatly  contradict  the  same  thing,  when  speaking  to 
man  personally. 

"In  the  case,  then,  of  an  apparent  seeming  discord,  of  a  superficial 


10 

contradiction,  we  have  to  wait,  and  be  absolutely  confident  that  one 
day  it  will  be  found  that  that  statement  of  ecience  which  seemed  to 
contradict  some  real  tenet  of  religion  was  either  not  a  real  result  of 
science,  but  a  hasty,  inaccurate,  unwarrantable  conclusion  from  the 
real  datas  and  facts  furnished  by  observation,  or  it  will  be  discovered 
that  the  fact  had  been  mistaken,  and  appearances  and  queries  had 
been  taken  for  facts.  Later  on  a  better  verification  of  facts,  and  more 
accurate  calculations  of  their  value  and  importance,  will  correct  the 
apparent  contradiction  and  conflict,  and  it  will  be  found  that  the  pre- 
tended discovery  was  no  discovery  at  all.  On  the  other  hand;  the 
apparent  contradiction  may  arise,  not  because  the  statement  of  science 
is  not  true,  but  from  the  fact  that  an  opinion  of  few,  or  many,  on  some 
religious  subject,  is  taken  as  a  real  tenet  or  dogma  of  faith.  When  the 
matter  is  properly  examined  it  will  appear  that  the  scientific  result 
was  opposed  not  to  a  truth  of  faith,  but  to  a  mere  human  opinion,  re- 
spectable, if  you  will,  in  consequence  of  the  personal  credit  of  its  sup- 
porters, but  not  less  human  and  fallible,  and  of  no  importance  what- 
ever in  the  question.  In  one  word,  a  statement  of  science  seems  to 
contradict  a  real  truth  of  revelation.  You  may  safely  assume  that 
the  statement  will  require  amendment,  and  will  receive  it  some  day 
or  other.  'On  the  other,  a  true  statement  of  science  seems  to  oppose' 
a  religious  tenet.  You  may  take  it  for  granted  that  that  religious  tenet 
is  by  no  means  a  truth  revealed  by  God  and  held  as  such  by  God's 
Church,  but  only  a  fallible  human  opinion  which  must  give  way  to 
science.     We  will  speak  of  the  direct  way  in  our  next  conversation." 


SECOND  ARTICLE. 

HERBERT   bPENCER'S   THEORY    CONCERNINO    MATTER — ITS    REFUTATION. 

Adele. — "Will  you  please,  uncle,  to  speak  on  the  direct  way  of 
answering  the  objection  that  there  is  conflict  between  science  and 
revelation  ?  We  proved  in  our  first  conversation  that  there  can  be  no 
opposition,  no  real  contradiction  between  science  and  revelation, 
because  both  are  two  distinct  ways  which  God  has  adopted  of  mani- 
festing His  infinite  perfections,  and  therefore  they  cannot  contradict 
each  other ;  one  manifesting  one  thing,  the  other  revealing  the  very 
opposite,  without  throwing  the  contradiction  and  inconsistency  upon 
God  Himself.  This  we  called  the  indirect  way  or  method.  We  are  now 
to  enter  upon  the  direct  way." 

Doctor. — "And  I  warn  you  that  the  direct  way  is  not  so  easy  or  so 
short  as  tho  other." 

George. — "I  suppose  not ;  at  the  same  time  I  cannot  help  thinking 


n 

that  it  will  be  more  satisfactory  to  the  common  run  of  people ;  at  any 
rate,  more  instructive." 

Doctor. — "You  are  right ;  it  will  necessarily  prove  more  instructive, 
as  it  consists  in  taking  one  natural  science  after  the  other;  in  ascer- 
taining what  are  really  und  undoubtedly  the  real  result  and  conse- 
quences of  such  science ;  in  comparing  each  of  these  results  with  the 
truths  of  revelation,  and  in  pointing  out  the  fact  how  no  truth  of 
science  contradicts,  or  is  opposed  to  any  real  principle,  statement  or 
fact  of  revelation." 

Adele.— "I  have  already  fallen  in  love  with  the  direct  way,  as  I  pre- 
sume we  shall  have  to  dabble  a  little  in  each  natural  science;  and 
thus  I  may  recall  some  of  my  sweet  school  days." 

Doctor. — "We  will  begin  to  day  at  the  very  beginning.  George,  what 
do  you  understand  by  matter  ?" 

George. — "It  is  very  hard  to  say  what  matter  is,  as  all  scientists  freely 
admit  that  they  know  nothing  at  all  about  its  nature ;  that  all  they 
can  know  about  it  is  what  they  infer  from  the  constant  observation  of 
its  properties.  But,  at  any  rate,  we  may  understand  by  matter  all  those 
tirst  substances,  whatever  they  may  be,  out  of  which  bodies  are  fash- 
ioned.' 

Doctor. — 'Very  well,  indeed,  George.  But  as  there  are  two  kinds  of 
bodies— living,  or  organic  bodies,  and  not  living,  inanimate,  inorganic 
bodies — I  prefer  to  speak  of  the  latter  first;  that  is,  not  living  bodies, 
called  otherwise  mineral." 

Adele.— "So  that  we  agree  to  limit  our  discussion  at  present  to 
mineral  bodies." 

George. — "In  that  case  I  mean  by  matter  those  first  substances  of 
which  mineral  or  inorganic  bodies  are  composed." 

Doctor. — "The  first,  most  important  question,  then,  to  be  discussed, 
and  in  which  the  apparent  antagonism  between  science  and  religion 
may  be  supposed  to  originate,  is  this:  Is  matter,  out  of  which  the 
mineral  world  is  fashioned,  created?  The  Bible  and  all  Christianity, 
together  with  the  most  colossal  intellects  of  mankind,  who  have  con- 
sidered it  a  high  honor  and  privilege  to  belong  to  Christianity  and  to 
uphold  its  doctrine,  have  always  maintained  that  matter  was  created 
immediately  by  God,  from  no  other  substance  previously  existing,  but 
simply  by  an  act  of  His  omnipotent  will.  Tell  us,  now,  George,  what 
some  scientists  of  our  times,  and  who  are  so  much  in  vogue,  hold  about 
matter." 

George. — "Why,  they  contend  that  matter  is  not  and  could  i3ot  be 
created.  Here  are  some  words  of  Herbert  Spencer:  'There  was  once 
universally  current  a  notion  that  things  could  vanish  into  absolute 
nothing,  or  r.rise  out  of  absolute  nothing.  The  gradual  accumulation 
of  experience,  however,  and  still  more  the  organization  of  experiences 


12 

has  tended  slowly  to  reverse  this  conviction,  until  now  the  doctrine 
that  matter  is  indestructible  has  become  commonplace.'" 

Adele. — "What  does  Mr.  Spencer  mean  by  the  organization  of  ex- 
periences ?" 

Doctor. — "You  are  to  know  that  our  modern  scientists  never  speak 
like  common  men  if  they  can  help  it;  they  know  that  man  rather  likes 
the  mysterious,  and  is  satisfied  with  high-sounding  words,  and  they  take 
advantage  of  it  to  impose  upon  the  simple  and  the  outsiders  or  pro- 
fane. By  the  organization  of  experiences  he  means,  I  suppose,  all  the 
different  experiences  and  observations  made  by  scientists,  sifted,  com- 
pared, classified,  and  brought  into  a  certain  order  and  system." 

George. — "Do  you  clearly  understand,  Miss  Adele,  what  Herbert 
Spencer  holds  about  matter?" 

Adele. — "I  think  I  do.  He  maintains  that  matter  cannot  have  com- 
menced to  exist  and  that  it  can  never  cease  to  exist." 

Doctor. — "And  what  do  we  call  that  which  can  neither  have  a  begin- 
ning nor  an  end  ?" 
Adele. — "I  believe  we  call  that  self-existing." 

Doctor.— "Now,  George,  please  to  tell  us  on  what  grounds  and  foi 
what  reasons  does  Mr.  Spencer  hold  matter  to  be  self-existent?" 

George. — 'As  far  as  I  can  make  out,  he  rests  his  opinion  principally 
on  two  reasons.  First,  on  the  impossibility  of  thinking  a  thing  to  have 
originated  in  absolute  nothingness." 

Adele. — "Gently,  Mr.  George.  I  cannot  say  I  follow  you  very  well. 
You  must  be  kind  enough  to  come  down  from  the  clouds,  to  accom- 
modate yourself  to  my  ordinary  female  brain." 

George. — "I  have  not  said  anything  very  hard,  but  I  will  try  to  speak 
plainer.  You  will  readily  grant  that  a  thing  cannot  exist  if  it  is  impos- 
sible and  contradictory." 

Adele. — "To  be  sure,  if  the  thing  is  impossible,  there  is  an  end  of  it.'' 
George. — "So  you  understand  that  when  a  thing  is  impossible  it  can- . 
not  be  supposed  to  exist  ?" 

Adele. — "I  grant  that  much  ;  but  how  am  I  to  know  when  the  thing 
is  possible  or  impossible  ?" 

George. — "Very  easily.  When  the  parts  or  elements  necessary  to 
make  up  the  idea  of  the  thing  clash  one  against  another,  contradict, 
and  mutually  exclude  each  other,  the  thing  is  unthinkable,  cannot  be 
thought  of,  and  is  therefore  impossible.  Try,  for  instance,  to  think  of  a 
square  circle,  or  a  triangle  with  four  angles,  and  you  cannot  succeed 
because  the  elements  which  are  necessary  to  make  up  the  idea  of  a 
square  circle  clash  with  and  exclude  each  other,  the  square  excluding 
the  circle,  and  the  circle  repudiating  the  square;  hence  the  thing  can- 
not be  thought,  and  is  impossible.  Now  it  is  not  thinkable  that  mat- 
ter could  have  originated  in  absolute  nothineness." 


13 

Adele.— "Why  ?  What  are  the  elements  in  the  idea  of  matter  being 
originated  by  absolute  nothingnes-i,  which  exclude  each  other?" 

George. — "Absolute  nothingness  excludes  all  existence,  does  it  not  ?" 

Adele.— "To  be  sure." 

George. — "To  originate  something  supposes  something  existing  and 
apting?' 

Adele. — "Certainly. " 

George. — "Then,  matter  originating  in  absolute  nothingness  means 
absolute  non-exislence  and  existence  at  the  same  time,  which  is  un- 
thinkable and  impossible.  'It  is  impossible,'  says  Spencer,  'to  think  of 
nothing  becoiuing  something.'  'The  creation  of  matter  is  unthink- 
able.' " 

Adele. —  'I  see." 

Doctor. —  'Before  we  go  any  further  let  us  dispose  of  this  reason,  so 
much  paraded  by  Spencer  and  other  infidels.  You  will  not  be  aston- 
ished, Adele,  to  hear  that  the  reason  is  good,  logical,  sound,  perfectly 
just  and  cogent ;  and  yet  it  proves  wi'h  the  greatest  evidence  against 
Spencer  the  very  dogma  of  Creation  which  he  has  feigned  to  attack. 
Now  piy  attention  to  the  following  remark.  When  we  speak  of  the 
universe  being  made  out  of  ncthlng,  we  may  take  that  word  nothing 
in  two  distinct  senses.  If  we  said  that  the  world  was  made  out  of 
nothing,  taking  the  word  'nothing'  in  an  absolute  sense,  it  would  mean 
that  nothing  whatever  really  existed,  and  that  out  of  that  nothing 
whatever,  something  sprang  up.  Such  a  proposition  is  not  thinkable  ; 
it  is  absurd  and  incotc^ivable. 

"On  the  other  hand.  If  we  said  the  world  was  made  out  of  nothing, 
taking  the  wr.rd  'nothing'  in  a  relative  sense,  it  means  that  the  uni- 
verse was  not  fashioned  oat  of  materials  already  existing,  but  was 
simply  the  effect  of  an  infinite  and  almifthty  energy  and  power. 

"  'Nothing,'  in  an  absolute  sense,  imp'  ies  the  total  absence  of  cause  and 
materials ;  taken  in  a  relative  sense,  it  supposes  the  absence  of  pre- 
viously existing  materials,  but  implifsand  imperatively  demands  an 
almighty  and  infinite  ciuse.  Now,  George,  have  you  remarked  in 
what  sense  Herbert  Spencer  maintains  that  the  creation  of  matter  ia 
unthinkable  ?" 

George. — 'Yes,  sir,  and  I  must  own  I  am  heartily  ashamed*  of  him 
and  of  his  sophism.  He  takes  the  word  'nothing'  in  an  absolute 
sense,  meaning  that  nothing  whatever  existing,  it  is  inconceivable  and 
unthinkable  how  anything  could  come  from  it.  'There  was  once 
universally  current  a  notion  that  things  could  vanish  into  absolute 
nothing,  or  arise  out  of  absolute  nothing.'  Taking  the  word  'nothing' 
in  an  absolute  s^nse,  he  is  right  in  saying  that  a  creation  from  nothing 
in  an  absolute  sense  is  ab?urd  au'!  inconceivable." 

Doctor. — "And   so   have  thought  all  Christian   philosophers,   the 


14 

whole  Christian  world,  and  the  whole  Catholic  Church ;  the  absurdity 
of  making  anything  from  universal  nothingness,  from  the  total  ab- 
sence of  any  existence  whatever,  is  laid  down,  commented  upon,  and 
explained  in  every  book  of  Christian  philosophy  or  theology;  in  every 
book  of  controversy  upon  this  and  kindred  topics.  And  when  Mr.  Spen- 
cer very  coolly  and  deliberately  asserts  'that  there  was  once  universally- 
current  a  notion  that  things  could  arise  out  of  absolute  nothing,'  and 
that  'such  proposition  that  cannot  be  thought  of  is  one  which  man- 
kind universally  professed  to  think,  and  which  the  great  majority  pro- 
fess to  think  even  now,'he  oughttoknow  tbathe  is  hing,  and  calumni- 
ating the  whole  Christian  world,  or  that  he  is  exhibiting  his  most 
colossal  ignorance  and  faith  in  the  gullibility  of  his  readers." 

Adele.— "So,  uncle,  if  I  understand  you  correctly,  the  first  pitiful 
reason  of  Spencer  in  favor  of  the  self  existence  of  matter  falls  to  the 
ground,  because,  though  it  be  self-evident  that  nothing  can  come  of 
absolute  nothing,  it  is  evident  to  the  simplest  mind  that  matter  can 
be  created  from  'nothing,'  taken  in  a  relative  sense;  that  is,  in 
respect  to  materials  previously  existing.  Mr.  Spencer  and  compeers, 
to  prove  the  impossibility  of  the  creation  of  matter,  ought  to  take  the 
trouble  to  demonstrate  not  by  such  miserable  sophism  as  he  uses,  but 
by  true,  real,  solid  reasons,  that  it  is  impossible,  even  for  an  infinite, 
omnipotent  power  to  create  matter,  without  previous  existing  mate- 
rials. When  he  has  done  so,  then  he  may  proclaim  loudly  the  self- 
existence  of  matter.  But  sO  far  he  has  every  reason  to  be  ashamed 
of  his  so-called  proof,  which  is  nothing  but  a  miserable  rehash  of  the 
saying  of  the  ancients.  From  Tiothing  nothing  is  made,  and  which 
the  whole  Christian  world  has  understood  and  explained  with  a  clear- 
ness that  cannot  be  mistaken,  and  which,  in  a  few  words,  can  be 
expressed  thus  :  From  total  absence  of  being  nothing  can  arise ;  but 
given  the  total  absence  of  preexisting  material,  omnipotent  and 
infinite  power  can  cause  things  to  exist." 

Doctor. — "Very  well  said,  Adele.  But  George,  leaving  aside  the 
second  reason,  which  Mr.  Spencer  has  alleged  as  proving  the  self- 
exiatence  of  matter,  and  which  we  shall  have  occasion  to  discuss 
presently,  we  will  inquire  what  real  science  has  discovered  and 
proved  ^bout  matter." 

George. — "I  think  we  can  easily  determine-  what  true  science 
reveals  about  matter.  First,  real  science  has  discovered  that  matter 
cannot  be  destroyed  by  any  means  whatever  within  man's  power. 
Matter  can  be  reduced  from  the  solid  state  into  the  state  of  fluid, 
or  gas,  and  back  again.  It  can  be  compressed  or  dilated ;  it  may  be 
divided  until  our  instruments  absolutely  fail  us ;  it  may  be  reduced 
to  such  a  state  as  to  escape  and  place  itself  beyond  our  reach  and 
that  of  our  instruments ;  that  is  all  that  science  has  discovered  and 


15 

hus  proifd ;  because  so  far  our  observation  can  go;  and  as  the 
sciences,  which  are  tailed  experiiuental,  rest  upon  experienco  and 
observation  fur  their  jyroof,  it  in  evident  that  nothing  mors  can  be  predi- 
cated of  matter  than  what  is  founded  on  observation." 

Doctor.— "But  luark  what  follows.  From  the  fact  that  man  or  his 
instruments  caunot  destroy  matter,  we  cannot  conclude  that  it  is  of  its 
own  nature  indestjuctible,  permanent  or  eternal;  because  otherwise 
we  should  draw  a  conclusion  wider  and  more  comprehensive  than  its 
premises.  All  the  conclusion  we  can  draw  is,  that  man  cannot  destroy 
matter,  because  we  find  it  to  be  so  on  constant  observation  and 
experiments.  But  to  siy  that  matter  is  intrinsically  and  essentially 
indestructible,  to  say  that  even  an  infinite  power  could  not  annihi- 
late it  because  man  is  proved,  by  constant  experience,  not  to  be  able  to 
destroy  matter  either  by  himself  or  aided  by  the  most  powerful 
instrument,  is  to  make  mockery  of  logic,  and  to  bid  good-by  to  all  com- 
mon sense  and  right  reasoning.*' 

George. — 'But,  Doctor,  what  should  we  answer  to  the  other  reason 
of  Spencer,  that  it  U  impossible  to  conceive  matter  as  non-existent 
becau-e  nothing  canaot  become  an  object  of  consciousness?" 

Adele. — "I  cannui  say  that  I  understand  that  reason.  Pray,  eluci- 
date it  in  a  few  words." 

George. — "I  will  try.  Suppose  Spencer  should  put  his  reasoning 
as  follows  :  We  caunot  have  consciousness  of  that  which  does  not 
exist;  therefore,  if  matter  should  cease  to  exist  our  consciousness 
of  it  would  cease  also.  But  we  are  always  thinking  andean  always 
think  of  matter ;  therefore  it  can  never  cease  to  exist." 

.  Adele. — "I  understand  now.  The  very  fact  of  our  thinking  of  mat- 
ter is  a  warrant  of  its  continual  existence ;  because,  as  we  are  not  able 
to  think  of  anything  which  dots  not  exist,  it  follows  that  if  matter 
should  cease  to  exist  the  very  thought  of  it  would  cease." 

George. — "Excellent,  Miss  Adele.  And  what  must  we  say  to  that. 
Doctor  ?" 

Doctor. — "Why,  George,  laugh  to  scorn  such  a  pitiful,  miserable, 
childish  reasoning,  which  would  disgrace  a  young  Miss  learning 
the  A  B  C  of  logic.  It  is  a  mystery  to  me  how,  in  the  nineteenth 
centurj',  men  can  come  forward  and  spout  such  nonsense,  and,  instead 
of  finding  pertiuns  charitable  enough  to  shut  them  up  in  a  madhouse, 
meeting  with  a  host  of  would  be  educated  men,  who  are  ready  to  fdll 
down  and  worship  them  just  because  that  nonsense  and  arrant 
absurdity  is  turned  against  Eeligion  and  God  Almighty.  If  it  were 
true  that  we  could  not  conceive  the  non-existence  of  matter,  on  the 
ground  that  'nothing' cmnot  be  the  olject  of  thought  or  conecicius- 
ness,  as  Spencer  is  pleased  to  call  it,  it  would  follow  that  we  could 
never  conceive  the  ideas  of  negation,  privation,  absence,  death,  dark- 


16 

ness,  black,  and  a  hundred  more  similar  ideas.  Every  one  knows 
that  we  form  negative  ideas  by  means  of  the  positive,  and  that  we 
contemplate,  so  to  speak,  the  negative  in  the  positive.  For  instance, 
I  have  the  idea  of  an  object  which  is  lying  before  me.  By  a  mental 
operation  I  remove  that  object,  and  thus  I  acquire  the  idea  of  negation 
and  absence.  I  can,  therefore,  easily  suppose  matter  to  be  removed, 
and  thus  apprehend  its  destruction  or  annihilation." 

Adele. — "But,  Doctor,  can  we  prove  by  true,  real,  positive  argu- 
ment, that  matter  must  have  been  created  ?" 

Doctor. — "Not  only  that,  but  we  can  prove  that  real,  true  science 
has  derrronstrated  by  inference  that  matter  must  have  been  created 
according  to  the  Christian  sense  of  the  word.  But  it  is  sufficient  for 
to  day.  Enough  is  as  good  as  a  feast.  We  will  resume  the  subject  at 
the  next  meeting." 


THIRD  ARTICLE. 

MODERN     SCIENCE   PROVES     THAT     MATTER    MUST    HAVE   BEEN   CREATED. 

Doctor. — "George,  what  is  the  subject  of  our  conversation  to-day  ?" 

George. — "Why,  that  matter  was  created  by  God  in  the  Christian 
'sense  of  the  word  ;  that  is,  from  no  previous  existing  materials,  but 
by  a  pure  act  of  His  omnipotent  will.  And  I  think  it  will  not  be 
hard  to  prove  that,  as,  from  my  studies  of  the  real  results  and  conse- 
quences of  modern  science  upon  the  subject,  I  am  ready  to  show  that 
it  has  really  been  created." 

Adele. — "Let  me  put  the  question  properly,  so  that  I  may  follow 
your  demonstration.  You  undertake  to  prove  that  matter  has  really 
been  created,  and  you  feel  strong  enough  to  accomplish  the  task 
from  the  results  and  consequences  of  modern  science.  Is  that  what 
you  undertake  to  do  ?  Think  well  on  it,  for  I  will  hold  you  to  your 
promise." 

George.— "Well,  I  don't  think  I  undertake  a  very  hard  task,  so  I 
am  sure  I  can  fulfill  my  promise  ;  but  you  must  allow  me  to  quote 
a  passage  from  the  Encyclopxdia  Britannica  about  matter  which  is 
edifying  and  interesting  to  a  degree:  'If  we  knew  thoroughly  the 
nature  of  any  piece  of  matter,  the  deduction  of  its  properties  would  be 
a  question  of  mere  reasoning.  But  as  we  not  even  know  what  matter 
is  in  the  abstract,  the  converse  operation  is  (at  least  for  the  present) 
the  natural  and  necessary  one.  We  must  endeavor  from  the  experi- 
meiitalhj  ascertzined  properties  of  matter  to  discover  what  it  is.  The 
properties  of  matter  may  be  arranged  in  several  cUst'Cs,  thus . 
Ist.  Properties  of  matter  in  itself,  .such  as  inertia.  {Encydopccdia 
Brit.  Art.  Matter.):  " 


17 

Doctor. — "Mark  well,  Adele ;  it  is  freely  admitted  by  the  scien- 
tists that  they  know  nothing  at  all  about  the  nature  of  matter,  as  it  ie 
evident  from  the  pnesage  quoted,  and  as  it  could  be  proved  by  any 
number  of  testimonies  of  the  best  and  the  greatest  among  them. 
And  they  are  perfectly  correct  in  the  consequence  they  draw  from 
that  admission :  that,  therefore,  all  we  know  about  matter  must  be 
inferred  from  the  properties,  which  by  experience  we  observe  to  be 
found  in  matter.  Hence  we  must  conclude  that  to  attribute  to 
matter  a  certain  nature  in  evident  conflict  with  its  principal  and  most 
widely  known  properties,  would  be  to  make  a  mockery  of  logic  and  of 
human  intelligence." 

Adele. — "I  understand  perfectly ;  so  long  as  by  admission  of  all 
scientists  we  know  nothing  about  the  nature  of  matter,  and  so  long 
as  all  we  can  know  about  it  must  be  inferred  from  the  properties 
we  observe  in  matter,  it  follows  that  it  would  be  absurd  to  assign  to 
it  a  nature  in  direct  opposition  to  its  best  known  properties." 

George. — "True;  and  now  I  call  your  attention  to  one  of  the 
most  commonly  admitted  properties  of  matter,  upon  which  all 
natural  philosophers  agree  without  one  dissentient  voice;  and 
about  the  scientific  importance  of  which  there  cannot  be  the 
remotest  possible  doubt.  It  is  inertii^.  I  am  sure  the  Doctor  can  give 
us  a  better  idea  of  this  property  of  matter  than  I  could  ever  attempt 
to  do." 

Doctor. — "I  prefer  to  give  it  in  words  of  well-known  authorities. 
Prof.  Silliman,  in  his  'First  Principles  of  Natural  Philosophy,' says: 
'Inertia  or  Inactiv  tij. — No  particle  of  matter  possesses  within  itself 
the  power  of  changing  its  existing  state  of  motion  or  rest.  Matter 
has  no  spontaneous  tendency,  either  for  rest  or  motion;  but  as  equally 
acceptable  to  each,  according  as  it  may  be  acted  on  by  an  external 
cause.  If  a  body  is  at  rest  a  force  is  necessary  to  put  it  in  motion, 
and  conversely.  It  cmnot  change  from  motion  to  rest  without  the 
agency  of  some  force.'  Ganot's  'Elementary  Treatise  on  Pbysics,' 
page  12:  'The  inability  of  matter  to  pass  by  it?elf  from  the  state  of 
rest  to  that  of  movement,  or  to  modify  the  movement  by  which  it  is 
animated,  is  called  inertia.^  The  first  law  of  Ivleper  about  motion  is 
founded  on  this  property  of  matter,  and  reads  as  follow>(:  'Every 
body  continues  in  its  state  of  rest  or  of  uniform  motion  in  a  straight 
line,  except  in  so  far  as  it  is  compelled  by  force  to  change  that  state.' 
It  is  explained  by  Prof.  P.  G.  Tait,  of  Edinburgh:  'This  lavv  tells 
what  happens  to  a  piece  of  matter  which  is  left  to  itself,  that  is  not 
acted  upon  by  force.  It  preserves  its  state  whether  of  rest  or  of  uni- 
form motion  in  a  straight  line.  This  property  is  commoi.ly  called 
inertia  of  matter,  in  virtue  of  which  it  is  incapable  of  varying  in  afly 
way  its  state  of  rest  or  motion.    It  may  be  the  sport  of  forces  for  any 


38 

length  of  time;  but  so  soon  as  they  ceafe  to  act  it  remains  in  the 
state  in  which  it  was  left  until  they  recommence  their  action  on  it. 
Hence  whenever  we  find  the  state  of  a  piece  of  matter  changing,  we 
conclude  that  it  is  under  the  action  of  a  force  or  foicea.'  {Ene.  Britt., 
art.  Mechanics,  by  Pn-f.  Tait.T 

Adele.— "I  am  suie  something  very  serious  is  going  to  be  the  up- 
shot of  so  many  preliiiinaries  and  of  so  much  care  and  trouble  of 
explaining  the  property  of  inertia.  But  as  I  am  very  anxious 
to  understand  it  well,  I  would  beg  leave  to  put  a  question.  I  would 
like  to  ask,  by  the  inertness  of  matter  do  we  understand  absolute 
and  unqualified  inactivity?" 

Doctor.— 'No.  The  real  and  objective  existence  of  matter  is  and 
can  only  be  known  to  us  by  the  changes  which  it  causes  in  us,  either 
directly  or  by  modifying  other  objects  which  act  upon  us  in  their 
turn.  If,  then,  matter  were  supposed  to  be  completely  inactive,  or 
devoid  of  all  external  activity,  we  should  have  no  natural  means  of 
knowing  it.  Tiieu  again,  it  ia  impossible  to  suppose  matter  to  be 
devoid  of  all  action,  either  internal  or  external.  Becii-use  there  can  be 
no  finite  substance  without  attributes.  Now,  what  attributes  can  we 
predicate  of  matter?  Extension?  But,  without  •  impenetrability^ 
extension  would  sfmply  be  an  imaginary  attribute.  Now,  impenetra- 
bility neccnsarily  implies  resistance,  which  is  somewhat  an  active 
element.  The  inertness  of  matter,  therefore,  cannot  be  supposed  to 
mean  absolute  and  unqualified  inactivity." 

Adele.— "I  am  glad  that  m^itter  has  at  least  the  force  of  resistance 
not  to  let  any  other  body  take  its  place." 

Doctor. — 'It  has  more  than  that.  It  has  the  force  of  resistance 
to  a  change  of  motion,  and  to  the  passii-g  from  rest  to  movement, 
or  from  movement  t J  rest;  and  to  counteract  by  such  resistance  in 
the  external  motor  or  agent  part  of  that  motion  communicated, 
equal  in  quantity  to  that  part  which  takes  effect ;  also  to  receive  the 
movement  and  to  transmit  it  to  others  according  to  an  invariable  law." 

Adele. — "Then  I  don't  see  why  philosophers  have  calumniated 
matter,  and  given  her  the  ugly  character  of  a  lazy,  inert,  indolent, 
good  for- nothing  old  thing." 

Doctor.— "No,  Adele,  they  have  not  slandered  it  in  the  least.  The 
real  inertness  of  matter  consists  in  the  fact  that  it  can  never 
spontaneous' y  aniS.  of  Its'/if  begin  movement,  or  cease  fnimit;  it  can 
never  spontaneously  change  its  velocity  or  speed,  or  change  its  direc- 
tion.   In  this  all  scientists  have  done  her  justice." 

Adele.— "Well,  and  what  do  you  infer  from  this  absolute 
inability  of  matter  to  start  its  movement  or  cease  from  it  ?" 

Doctor. — "I  infer  that  on  that  account  it  cannot  be  seH  existent, 
and  must  necessarily  have  been  created." 


19 

Adele. — "I  cannot  say  that  I  follow  you." 

Doctor. — "Listen  then  to  the  argument  which  follows  from  that 
universally  admitted  fact.  If  matter,  if  each  portion  of  matter  which 
we  call  »  body,  must  receive  its  movement  from  an  external  agent,  it 
follows  that  the  principle  of  movement  is  not  and  cannot  be  in 
matter,  nor  in  any  portion  of  it;  that  matter  must  depend  for  its 
action  upon  an  external  agent ;  that  it  can  never  art  except  and 
solely  under  the  impulse  of  an  external  agent;  again,  that  t-upprsing 
the  absence  of  an  exterior  force  to  impress  such  movement,  matter 
would  be  absolutely  and  irredeemably  motionless  and  good  for 
nothitig.  Now,  it  is  a  contradiction  to  suppose  a  thing  on  the  one 
hand  subject  to  and  dependent  upon  another  for  its  movement, 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  to  suppose  it  altogether  independent,  free, 
sovereign,  absolute  as  to  its  existence ;  for,  mark  it  well,  all  this  is 
supposed  when  we  assert  the  self  existence  of  matter.  To  be  eelf- 
existiiig  means  to  be  independent,  absolute,  sovereign,  free,  as  to 
existence  from  any  outward  or  external  cause.  Hence  to  assert 
matter  to  be  self-existent  is  to  claim  for  it  freedom,  independence, 
sovereignty  from  all  causes  whatever  as  to  existence." 

Adele. — "And  is  it  a  contradiction  to  say  that  matter  is  absolute, 
independent  of  all  causes  whatever  as  to  its  existence,  and  to  affirm, 
on  the  other  hand,  that  it  is  absolutely  helpless  in  itself  and  dependent 
upon  an  external  cause  for  its  action  ?" 

Doctor. — *  To  be  sure." 

Adele.— "Why  ?" 

Doctor. — "Because,  if  a  thing  is  dependent  as  to  its  action,  it  must 
also  be  dependent  as  to  its  existence,  since  a  thing  ads  as  it  exists.  If 
its  existence  is  independent  of  any  external  cause  it  will  act  indepen- 
dently of  any  external  agent ;  if  it  he  dependent  and  subject  as  to  its 
existence  it  will  act  as  dependent  and  subject.  Scientists  admit  that 
we  must  infer  the  nature  of  matter  from  its  qualities  and  properties 
which  come  under  our  observation  ;  we  find  the  action  of  matter  de- 
pendent upon  an  external  agent ;  therefore  its  nature  also  and  ex- 
istence must  he  dependent  upon  an  external  principle." 

Adele.— "You  mean  to  say  this:  Does  it  not  seem  quite  ludicrous 
to  make  matter  so  grand  and  lofty  as  to  proclaim  it  no  less  than  self- 
existent,  and  then  to  behold  the  very  men  who  exalt  it  so  much  setting 
aside  all  regard  for  its  grandeur  and  lofty  majesty,  mercilessly  and 
pitilessly  pulling  it  down  from  thehigh  throne  to  cast  it  on  the  ground? 
Matter  so  great,  so  sublime  as  to  be  self-existent,  free,  independent, 
sovereign,  absolute;  matter  so  low,  so  mean,  so  paltry,  such  a  miserable 
slave,  as  to  be  unable  to  move  an  inch  without  the  impulse  of  the  first 
living  being  which  may  choose  to  kick  it!  And  what  is  worse,  it  is  so* 
chained  to  absolute  inaction  and  sloth  as  to  remain  in  its  indolence  and 


20 

helplessness  for  all  eternity  unless,  like  the  poor  wretches  on  board  a 
slave  ship,  who  are  forced  to  dance  and  to  be  merry  for  fear  of  their 
dying  for  want  of  exercise,  it  be  aided  and  impelled  to  move  by  some 
hajrd  task-master  or  some  kind  external  power.  That  is  self-existence 
with  a  vengeance!" 

Doctor. — "And  this  is  the  more  absurd  because,  as  I  have  already 
alluded,  the  action  of  a  being  is  in  conformity  and  in  full  keeping 
with  the  existence  and  nature  of  the  being.  You  cannot  gather  grapes 
out  of  thistles.  A  thing  cannot  act  except  as  it  is,  and  it  were  absurd 
to  expect  a  thing  to  act  either  as  above  or  contrary  to  its  nature.  What 
ia  the  action  of  a  being  ?  Its  movement.  And  can  any  one  suppose 
a  thing  to  move  in  any  way  except  in  that  shaped  and  determined  by 
its  existence  and  nature  ?  This  is  so  true,  so  in  accordance  with  the 
common  sense  of  mankind,  that  they  are  continually  inferring  the 
nature  of  a  thing  from  its  action,  and  are  perfectly  confident  that  in 
doing  so  they  cannot  be  mistaken.  Now,  the  action  and  movement 
of  matter  necessarily  and  absolutely  depends  upon  the  action  of  an  ex- 
ternal agent  and  cause ;  consequently,  its  existence  and  nature  must  be 
dependeut  upon  an  external  cause,  and  cannot  be  admitted  to  be  self- 
existent  without  contradiction.  And  you  will  remark  that  this  argu- 
ment proves  not  only  the  impossibility  of  matter  being  self  existent, 
but  also  that  it  must  have  been  created  by  one  truly  and  really  self- 
existing,  infinite  Power." 

Adele. — "Pray  explain  that." 

Doctor. — "We  have  seen  that  matter  depends  upon  an  external 
cause  for  its  existence  and  its  movement.  Now,  it  is  natural  to  inquire 
next  what  sort  of  a  power  or  cause  is  this  upon  which  matter  depends, 
and  in  answer  we  may  make  a  twofold  supposition.  Either  this  prin- 
ciple upon  which  matter  depends  for  existence  and  movement  contains 
in  itself  the  reason  of  its  own  existence  and  action,  or,  like  matter,  it 
borrows  it  from  another.  This  latter  supposition  cannot  be  maintained 
because  it  explains  nothing,  and  throws  the  question  back  as  one 
could  ask:  From  whence  does  this  principle  borrow  its  existence  and 
movement?  and  the  answer  woald  have  to  be  from  a  third,  a  fourth, 
a  fifth,  and  so  on  forever,  without  ever  accounting  for  the  existence  and 
movement  of  matter.  Hence  to  account  for  the  existence  and  move- 
ment of  the  latter  we  must  absolutely  and  nec^sarily  take  refuge  in  the 
admission  of  a  Being  who  contains  in  Himself  the  reason  of  His  ex- 
istence and  action." 

George. — "What  are  you  laughing  at,  Miss  Adele  ?" 

Adele. — "Why,  the  supposition  of  a  number  of  beings,  every  one 
of  which  has  a  borrowed  existence  and  movement  to  account  for  the  ex- 
istence and  movement  of  matter,  brought  vividly  before  my  niind  an 
anecdote  I  read  some  time  ago  in  a  French  book.    A  free-thinker  was 


boasting  in  a  gathering  of  ladies  and  gentlemen  that  he  did  not  see 
any  necessity  whatever  for  the  existence  of  an  infinite  self-existing 
Being  to  account  for  the  universe.  One  of  the  ladies  present  politely 
and  charmingly  asked  him  if  he  would  allow  her  to  put  him  a  ques- 
tion." 

"  'I  shall  consider  it  a  great  honor,'  he  replied. 
"'Will  you  be  so  kind,'  continued  the  lady,  'as  to  tell  me  which 
was  first,  the  egg  or  the  hen  ?' 

"'Why,  the  egg,  of  course,'  answered  the  free-thinker. 
"'Charming!'  said  the  lady;  'but  pray,  who  hatched  that  first  egg?' 
"'Beg  your  pardon,' retorted  the  freethinker,  'I  must  have  been 
distracted  ;  the  hen,  of  course,  must  have  been  first.' 

'"Then  will  you  allow  me  to  suppose,'  insisted  the  lady,  'that  the 
first  hen  did  not  come  from  an  egg ;  and  in  that  case,  if  the  first  hen 
did  not  come  from  an  egg,  pray  from  what  did  it  come?' 

"'Ma'am,' replied  the  free-thinker,  'you  would  make  one  forget 
the  respect  due  to  your  sex,  with  your  hens  and  your  eggs.' 

"  'Of  course,'  replied  the  lady,  raising  her  voice  so  that  every  one  in 
the  room  could  hear,  'you  unreasonable  boasters,  without  the  suppo- 
sition of  a  self  existing  infinite  power,  you  cannot  account  even  for  the 
existence  of  an  f  gg  or  a  hen,  and  without  God  you  pretend  to  account 
for  the  myriads  of  lofty,  vast,  wondrous  worlds,  rolling  in  grandeur  and 
majesty  above  our  heads.    A  filip  for  your  pretended  science!' " 

Doctor  — "This  self-existent,  infinite,  living  power.  Christians  call 
God,  praising  ard  adoring  Him  as  the  source  and  fountain  of  all  exis- 
tence 8t«  well  as  of  all  other  good." 

George. — "Well  may  we  exclaim  vrith  Mrs.  Hemans : 

"OThoii.  th'  unseen,  th'  all-seeing  Thou,  whose  ways 
Matitled  with  darkness  mock  all  tloite  gaze; 
Father  of  worlds  unknown,  unnumbered.  Thou 
With  whf  m  all  time  is  an  eternal  7iow, 
Who  know'st  no  past  nor  future — Thou  whose  breath 
G  69  forth  and  bears  to  myriads  life  or  death, 
Look  on  us,  guide  us,  wanderers  of  a  SPa, 
Wild  and  obscure,  what  are  we  'reft  of  Thee  ?" 

— Mrs.  ITemans^  '^The  Skeptic." 


FOURTH  ARTICLE. 

IDEA   OP    SELF  EXISTENCE— DID  CHRISTIANS    EVER    UNDERSTAND    WHAT 
THEY    MEANT    BY    GOD?— COMPLIMENTS    OK   HERBERT   SPENCER. 

Doctor.—"We  may  now  turn  our  attention  to  the  attributes  and 
perfections  which  can  be  logically  deduced  from  the  idea  of  a  self  ex- 
istent Being,  and  thus  to  explain  all  the  perfections  of  God." 

George. — 'I  am  sorry  to  interrupt  you,  Doctor,  but  I  fear  the  so- 


22 

called  modern  science  is  in  your  way  there.  I  need  not  remind  you 
that  Herbert  Spencer  and  his  followers  have  pretended  that  the  idea 
of  a  self-existing  Being  is  wholly  and  utterly  inconceivable,  and  that, 
therefore,  the  thing  itself  i-J  impossible." 

Doctor.— "I  am  fully  aware  of  what  you  say,  George,  but  Spencer's 
reasoning  is  so  childish,  so  silly,  so  ludicrous,  so  utterly  wretched  and 
pitiful,  that  I  had  come  to  the  conclusion  to  pass  over  the  whole  thing 
with  silent  contempt.  But  a-i  you  mention  it,  we  may  as  well  take  it 
up  atd  examine  it.  If  it  has  no  more  beneficial  result  than  to  amuse 
Adele,  our  time  will  not  be  entirely  thrown  away." 

Adele.— "I  shall  be  infinitely  obliged  to  Mr.  Spencer  for  any  little 
fun  he  may  afford  me." 

Doctor.— "Tell  us,  George,  what  dire  and  lamentable  consequences 
will  follow  if  we  maintain  the  idea  of  a  felf-existent  Being  ?" 

George.— "I  will  quote  Mr.  Spencer:  'lu  the  first  place,  it  is  clear 
that  by  se'f -existence  we  especially  mean  an  existence  independent  o[  any 
other,  not  produced  by  any  other'  (First  Principles.  Appleton  edition, 
1874,  page  31)." 

Doctor.— "To  be  sure  we  mean  that  very  thing — and  what  then  ?" 

George. — "The  assertion  of  self- existence  is  simply  an  indirect  de- 
nial of  creation."    {lb.) 

Doctor.— "  Breakers  ahead,  George.  When  you  are  reading  our 
modern  scientists  and  infidels  you  must  be  on  the  alert  and  have  the 
eyes  of  Argus,  else  by  some  sly  manipulation  they  will  slip  in  some 
vague,  indistinct,  general  assertion,  which,  if  you  fail  to  detect  at  the 
proper  time  and  place,  will  give  you  trouble  afterwards.  Now  look 
closely  at  the  proposition,  'The  assertion  of  self  existence  is  simply  an 
indirect  denial  of  creation.'  Mark  what  J  say:  in  reference,  and  only 
in  rtference,  to  that  being  of  whom  we  predicate  tho  self-existence,  cei- 
tainly  the  assertion  of  self- existence  i9  au  indirect  denial  of  his  crea- 
tion. In  reference  to  all  other  bfings,  certainly  not  Mr.  Spencer 
takes  the  expression,  'an  indirect  d^-nial  of  creation,  in  a  general 
sense,  as  applicable  to  all  and  every  being,  and  taken  in  that  sense 
the  proposition  is  false.  Because  from  the  fact  that  I  predicate  the  self- 
existence  of  one  being,  and  thereby  suppose  the  der^ial  of  the  creation 
of  such  a  being,  it  does  not  follow  that  I  mean  to  deny  all  creation  in 
general.    Go  on,  George." 

George.— "In  thus  excluding  the  idea  of  any  antecedent  cause,  we 
necessarily  exclude  the  idea  of  a  beginning." 

Doctor.— "Of  course  we  do." 

George.— "Spencer  gives  the  reason  for  this." 

Doctor.— 'Spare  us  such  transcendental  effort  of  genius,  George. 
Why,  any  tyro  in  logic  would  be  ashamed  of  such  attempt  at  display. 
Come  at  once  to  the  conclusion." 


23 

George.— "Self- existence,  therefore,  necessarily  means  existence 
without  a  beginning,  and  to  form  a  conception  of  self-existence  is  to 
form  a  conception  without  a  beginning.  No,  by  no  mental  efiort  can 
we  do  this." 

Adele.— "Why  ?" 

Doctor.— "Adele  has  taken  the  word  out  of  my  mouth.  Dear  me, 
what  a  displaj'  of  the  cheapest  metaphysical  lore. !  St-lf-exietence 
means  an  existence  without  beginning !  Did  any  one  ever  hear  anything 
80  wonderfully  cute,  rare,  precious  and  unique  ?  To  form  an  idea  of 
self-existence  is  to  form  n  idea  of  an  existence  without  beginning! 
How  profound!  Why  was  not  Herbert  Spencer  born  a  few  centuries 
back!  He  would  htve  shed  floods  of  ligiit  on  what  he  and  his  asso- 
ciates, equally  deep  as  himself,  call  the  dark  ages!  And  now,  'by  no 
mental  efiort  can  we  form  the  conception  of  an  existence  without  be- 
ginning;.' Why,  without  such  a  mental  effort  the  whole  Christian 
world  /(  'S  formed  such  a  conception.  Among  Christians  of  every  age 
there  were,  literally  speaking,  the  greatest  and  the  noblest  geniuses  of 
the  human  race,  colossal  intellects,  alongside  of  which  the  puny  brains 
of  our  modern  infidels  must  sink  into  utter  insignificance,  even  as  a 
pebble  which  we  crush  under  our  feet  is  utterly  lost  in  comparison 
with  the  Egyptian  pyramids.  Spencer,  with  a  coolness  commensurate 
with  his  ignorance,  dares  to  assert  that  such  men  for  instance  as  St. 
Augustine,  St.  Thomas,  Leibnitz,  Michael  Angelo,  Gilileo,  Bacon, 
Shakespeare,  Bossuet,  Fenelon,  Milton,  Kleper,  Newton,  Napoleon, 
only  imagined  to  conceive  what  in  reality  they  did  not  conceive,  and 
were  the  victims  of  mystitieation  and  self-delusion.  But  let  us  hear  the 
wonderful  reason  which,  ace  >rding  to  Spencer,  prevented  all  Chris- 
tians fr  im  conceiving  what  they  really  and  truly  did  not  c.)nceive." 

George. — "To  conceive  an  exi.-^tence  through  infinite  past  time 
implies  the  conception  of  an  intinile  past  time,  which  is  an  impossi- 
bility." 

Adele. — "Stop,  if  you  please,  Mr.  George.  The  only  word  I  under- 
stand in  your  whole  quotation  is  pastime,  and  I  am  sure  I  find  it  any- 
thing but  pastime  or  amusement." 

Doctor. — "It  is  not  such  a  hard  task  to  understand  it.  Listen.  We 
learn  in  mathematics  that  an  infinite  number  is  impossible,  because  a 
number  is  necessarily  a  collection  of  distinct  units.  If  it  were  not  a 
collection  of  units  it  would  be  a  unity,  but  not  a  number.  If  those 
units  were  not  distinct,  but  the  same  and  identical,  the  same  incon- 
venience would  follow  :  we  should  have  a  unit,  but  not  a  number. 
Number  is  therefore  a  collection  of  distinct  units.  This  renders  the 
conception  of  an  infinite  number  absolutely  impossible,  for  the  simple 
reason  that  we  can  alivays  add  to  or  subtract  from  it — addition  or  sub- 
traction— which  is  in  direct  contrad Lotion  with  the  idea  of  the  infinite." 


24^ 

Adele.--"Why  ?" 

Doctor.— "Because  the  infinite  implies  the  idea  of  something  com- 
plete, finished,  perfected,  to  which  we  can  neither  add  nor  subtract 
from,  whereas  number  means  a  collection  of  distinct  units  capable  of 
increase  or  diminution ;  hence  the  two  ideas  exclude  each  other  and 
cannot  agree  together,  and  an  infinite  number  is  as  inconceivable  as 
that  of  a  square  circle  or  a  triangle  with  four  sides." 

Adele.— "Let  me  see  if  I  catch  your  reasoning.  What  is  a  number  ? 
A  collection  of  distinct  units  capable  of  increase  or  diminution,  of  addi- 
tion or  subtraction,  because  whatever  number  we  may  imagine  we  can 
always  add  to  or  subtract  from  it  certain  units.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  idea  of  the  infinite  is  that  of  something  absolutely  perfect  and 
complete,  to  which  one  can  neither  add  nor  take  from.  Hence  the  two 
ideas  exclude  each  other,  and  the  two  together  cannot  be  conceived." 

Doctor.— "Excellent,  Adele.  Now,  Herbert  Spencer  pretends  that 
to  conceive  an  existence  without  beginning  is  to  conceive  a  number 
actually  infinite." 

Adele.— "How  ?" 

Doctor.— "Thus :  Suppose  the  existence  without  beginning  to 
have  undergone  movement  and  a  succession  of  acts,  it  is  clear  that  we 
have_a  number  of  acts  without  beginning  or  end.  And  what  is  that  but 
a  number  actully  infinite- or,  to  use  Spencer's  expressions,  an  infinite 
past  time  ?    Of  course  I  need  not  say  that  such  a  thing  is  impossible." 

George.— "Then,  Doctor,  you  agree  with  Spencer  that  to  conceive  of 
an  existence  without  beginning  is  an  impossible  task,  because  it  im- 
plies the  conception  of  a  number  actually  infinite  ?" 

Adele.— "What,  uncle!  I  cannot  conceive  God  as  sell- existent, 
because  that  would  be  attempting  to  form  an  idea  of  infinite  past  time." 

Doctor. — "I  Bee  both  of  you  are  upon  me  at  once.  But  don't  be 
afraid,  I  am  conceding  what  is  true  in  the  argument  of  Spencer,  and  at 
the  same  time  putting  in  the  most  striking  light  possible  the  monstrous 
and  colossal  ignorance  of  the  same,  or  his  evident  dishonesty  and  bad 
faith.  Mark  it  well.  To  conceive  of  an  existence  without  beginning, 
subject  to  a  succession  and  change  of  movements  and  acts,  is  an  impos- 
;  sibility,  because  that  would  be  really  supposing  a  number  that  is  a  col- 
'■  lection  of  distinct  units  actually  infinite. 

"But  such  an  existence  has  only  existed  in  the  fertile  imagination 
ot  Herbert  Spencer.  Christian  philosophy  never  as  much  as  dreamt 
of  such  a  thing.  The  existence  without  beginning,  as  understood  by  the 
Christian  world,  differs  as  much  from  the  existence  without  beginning 
imagined  by  Spencer  as  light  from  darkness,  white  from  black,  the 
infinite  from  the  finite  dift'er  from  each  other  ;  and  Spencer  was  either 
a  fool  or  a  knave  when  he  asserted  that  Christians  conceiving  an  ex- 
istence without  beginning  meant  an  existence  for  all  eternity  subject  to 


25 

a  succession  of  movements  and  acts;  in  other  words,  subject  to  a  sue- 
cession  or  collection  of  different  acts,  which  would  be'an  iatimte  pas,' 
time." 

George. — 'So  the  idea  of  self-existent  being,  of  course  Avithout  be- 
ginning or  end,  absolutely  excludes  all  succession  of  acts  or  n^ove- 
ments;  otherwise  we  should  have  the  impossible  supposition." 

Doctor. — "Certainly,  it  excludes  all  number.  The  self  existent 
being  must  necessarily  be  one  pure,  simple,  absolute  actuality  or  act; 
otherwise  we  cannot  conceive  it.  Suppose  fora  moment  that  it  could 
be  two  acts — first,  the  act  of  existence :  pext,  the  second  act  or  move- 
ment. Whence  would  this  second  act  oome?  From  the  first  act? 
Then  it  was  there  already,  as  the  lirst  act  could  not  give  itself  what  it 
had  not.  From  an  external  agent  ?  Then,  in  that  case  the  first  acfc 
would  not  be  self-existent  any  longer,  because,  as  we  proved  in  another 
conversation,  one  who  is  dependent  upon  another  for  Hs  action  is  de 
pendent  also  for  its  existence,  since  a  being  acts  as  it  is;  ii  it  is  inde- 
pendent in  its  existence  it  acts  independent  of  any  one ;  if  it  is  depend- 
ent it  acts  under  dependence." 

Adele. — "I  think  I  understand  the  whole  argument,  and  if  I  had 
the  greatly  exaggerated  philosopher  beforeime,  I  would  say  :  My  dear 
Mr.  Spencer,  you  have  played  a  part  unworthy  of  one  of  your  nation, 
so  fond  of  fair  play.  First,  you  have  imagined  that  Christians,  by  a  self- 
existent  being  without  beginning  or  end,  meant  a  being  subject  to 
movements  and  changes  following  each  other  in  rapid  succession; 
then  you  have  argued  that  the  supposition  of  such  a  thing  is  to  sup- 
pose a  number  actually  infinite,  and  have  easily  come  to  the  conclu- 
sion that  therefore  the  conception  of  self  existent  being  is  impossible. 
Now,  Christians,  by  a  gelf  existent  being,  have  always  and  everywhere 
meant  an  existence  absolutely  complete  and  perfect,  free  and  independ- 
ent of  all  possible  change  and  succession ;  they  exclude  from  such  ex- 
istence all  composition,  collection  or  number,  and  they  have  purposely 
called  it  most  Pure  Act,  or  Actuality  itself,  to  eliminate  from  it  all 
possibility  and  capacity  of  or  liability  to  progress,  improvement,  change 
of  state,  or  modification  of  any  kind  whatever.  Therefore  the  idea  of 
self  existence,  as  such,  implying  the  idea  of  absolute,  independent,  most 
finished  and  complete  perfection,  is  assuredly  intelligible  and  conceiv- 
able." 

George.— "Very  good  indeed.  Miss  Adele  ;  if  Mr.  Spencer  were  ac- 
cessible to  you'  he  would  not  get  ofl  very  easily  on  the  score  of  self- 
existence." 

Adele. — "Nay,  more,  I  would  tell  him  and  his  compeers  that,  by 
their  idea  of  self-existence,  they  have  themselves  offered  the  best  argu- 
ment for  the  overthrow  of  their  whole  system." 

George. — "I  don't  exactly  catch  your  meaning." 


26 

Adele. — "Didn't  you  say  that  the  very  essence  of  Spencer's  system 
consists  in  admitting  an  indestructible  niattfr  which  has  hid  no 
beginning,  and  which  develops  itself  and  gradually  assumes  all  the 
forms  of  the  universe  ?" 

George. — "Certainly,  that  is  the  outline  of  Spencer's  system,  and  oi 
ail  those  who  are  calltd  material  Pantheists." 

Adele  — "Very  well,  if  their  system  is  the  hypothesis  of  a  matter 
eelf  existent,  which  had  no  beginning  of  course,  and  which  gradually 
unfolds  itself,  that  is,  is  subject  to  movement  and  change  of  slates ;  all 
tliat  is  admitting  a  number  actually  infinite,  or  the  conception  of  an 
iiifi'iite  past  time,  as  he  expresses  it,  which  according  to  him  is  abso- 
lutely and  utterly  impossible.  Therefore,  to  my  poor  mind,  the  whole 
t^ystem  of  Spencer  and  compeers  is  inconceivable  and  absurd  by  their 
own  admission." 

Doctor  — "You  are  perfectly  right,  Adele,  and  if  these  gentlemen 
had  a  grain  of  logic  and  consistency  in  them,  or  a  tittle  of  love  for  truth, 
they  would  soon  find  out  the  utter  worthlessness,  inconsistency,  con- 
tradiction and  absurdity  of  their  pet  theories.  A  self  existing  matter, 
or  matter  without  a  beginning,  must  be  supposed  to  be  either  abso- 
lutely inert,  stationary,  immovable  and  dead,  or  subject  to  successive 
motion.  In  either  supposition  Spencer's  system  is  absurd.  If  we  as- 
sume matter  as  stationary  and  inert,  it  will  remain  in  that  state  for  all 
eternity  for  want  of  some  agent  to  set  it  in  motion,  and,  mind  you, 
Spencer  admits  no  other  principle;  matter,  then,  will  remain  in  its 
inertness  forever,  and  neither  the  different  forms  nor  the  movement  of 
the  universe  can  be  explained.  If  we  suppose  matter  subject  to  suc- 
cessive motion  it  will  not  be  any  better  because  successive  motion 
without  a  beginning  means  an  infinite  past  time;  an  infinite  past  time 
is  absolutely  and  utterly  inconceivable  ;  therefore  a  self-existing  matter 
undergoing  movement  from  all  eternity  is  a  sheer  absurdity  and  non- 
eense,  and  Spencer's  system  is  scattered  by  himself  to  the  four  winds  of 
heaven.  But,  for  God's  sake,  let  us  leave  darkness  so  heavy  and  oppres- 
sive and  turn  to  light.  George,  please  read  the  page  I  have  marked  in 
Fenelon.    I  know  you  can  translate  as  you  go  along," 

George. — "The  self-existent  Being  exists  in  a  supreme  degree,  and 
hence  is  posses'^ed  of  the  fullness  of  being.  It  is  not  possible  to  suppose 
the  supreme  degree  and  fullness  of  being  without  at  the  same  time 
supposing  the  infinitf.  ;  because  the  finite  is  neither  full  nor  supreme, 
as  we  are  free  continually  to  add  to  it.  Hence  the  self-existing  Being 
must  be  the  infinite  Being." 

Doctor.— "Mark,  Adele,  what  Fenelon,  with  all  Christian  theology 
and  philosophy,  means  by  a  self-existing  Being.  They  understand  by 
it  one  who  has  a  real  and  downright  actual  possession  of  the  fullness 
and  completeness  of  being  in  the  highest,  supreme,  and  absolute  de- 


27 

gree.  They  mean  Being  Itself,  and  not  a  certain  kind  of  being  with  the 
capacity  and  aptitude  of  receiving  more  being.  Now,  to  suppoi-e  such  a 
being  is  to  suppose  the  Tnlinite;  becau^^e  you  can  neither  add  to  nor 
subtract  from  the  absolute  fullness  of  being.  What  would  you  add  to 
it?  Perfection?  It  is  the  absolute  fullness  of  perfection,  and  if  you 
could  add  more  to  that  you  would  call  in  question  and  destroy  the 
supposition  of  its  being  the  absolute  fullness  and  completeness  of  per- 
fection." 

George. — "If  He  is  an  Infinite  Being  He  is  infinitely  perfect,  be- 
cause being,  goodness,  and  perfection  are  one  and  the  same  thing." 

Adele — "Hold  on,  George,  this  seems  to  require  some  explanation 
How  can  being,  goodness,  and  perfection  be  one  and  the  same  thing  ?" 

George. — "Well,  are  goodness  and  perfection  something  or  not?  II 
you  cannot  say  that  they  are  nothing  they  must  be  something, 
therefore  they  are  the  same  as  being.  The  only  difference  in  these 
ideas  is  that  being  means  that  which  is  really  existing,  whereas  good- 
ness and  perfecdon  mean  being,  which  is  tne  object  sought  after  by  a 
faculty.  Hence  goodness  and  perfection  suppose  a  relation  that  being 
has  to  a  faculty,  which  longs  for  it.  Take  for  instance  light.  Now, con- 
sidering it  as  a  real  something,  it  is  called  being ;  but,  if  we  look  upon  that 
something  as  the  object  sought  for  by  our  vision,  it  is  called  the  good 
and  the  perfection  of  our  eye.  Being,  therefore,  good  and  perfection, 
are,  so  far  as  reality  is  concerned,  one  and  the  same  thing." 

Doctor. — "Continue  the  passage  of  Fenelon." 

George. — "From  the  idea  of  a  necessary  or  self-existing  being  fol- 
lows the  simplicity  and  unity  of  God.  Hie  siaiplicity,  because  nothing 
made  up  of  parts  can  be  either  infinitely  perfect  or  infinite  at  all  in 
any  sense.  His  unity,  because  if  there  were  two  necessary  and  inde- 
pendent beings,  each  one  would  be  less  perfect  by  this  divided  power 
than  if  one  should  unite  in  Himself  the  whole. 

"He  is  immutable,  for  He  who  is  self  existent  can  never  be  other- 
wise understood.  He  contains  always  the  same  reason  for  self  exis- 
tence, which  is  His  essence.  Hence  He  is  immutable  in  His  existence. 
He  i3  no  more  capable  of  changes  with  regard  to  the  manner  of  being 
than  He  is  with  reference  to  His  existence  itself.  The  moment  He  is 
conceived  to  be  infinite  and  infinitely  simple,  we  cannot  attribute  to 
Him  any  modification,  because  modifications  are  limitations  and 
boundaries  of  being-  To  bo  modified  in  a  certain  fat>hion  is  to  exist  in 
a  certain  fashion  to  tho  exclusion  of  all  other  ways.  The  infinitely  per- 
fect, therefore,  cannot  be  subject  to  mcdification,  and  therefore  cannot 
change."     {FeneJon  De  VExis-fpncc  de  Dim.) 

Doctor. — "The  idea,  then,  of  a  self-existent  Being,  as  understood 
by  Christii^nity,  is  the  only  possible  and  reasonable  idea  of  self  ex- 
istence, that  is,  a  Being  existing  by  Himself)  without  beginning  or  end ; 


without  succession  or  change  in  His  existence  or  in  His  manner  of 
being ;  but  absolutely  immutable,  the  fullness  and  plenitude  of  being, 
the  Infinite,  the  most  pure  and  simple  Act,  the  concentration,  so  to 
speak,  of  all  conceivable  actuality,  reality  and  perfection.  Take  away 
such  an  idea  of  self  existence — in  other  words,  take  away  the  Christian 
idea  of  God — and  you  proclaim  absolute  materialism,  the  death  of  all 
being  and  of  all  intelligence,  as  we  have  proved  that  if  we  remove  such 
idea  we  have  nothing  left  but  to  fall  back  upon  the  idea  of  a  self  existing 
matter  without  beginning,  subject  to  chawge  and  succession  ;  that  is, 
to  the  absurd  and  inconceivable  supposition  of  an  infinite  past  time. 
In  spite  then  of  modern  science,  we  may  conclude — 

"God  is  still  God. and 

His  faith  shall  not  fail  us." 

— Lom/fellow,  "  The  ]\/tin  of  Nidaros." 


FIFTH  ARTICLE. 

FORMATION  OF  THE  UNIVERSE— BEAUTIFUL  HYPOTHESIS  OP  LA  PLACE. 

Doctor. — "In our  former  conversations  we  have  cometo  the  conclu- 
sion that  matter,  or  the  primitive  substances  out  of  which  the  inor 
ganic  world  was  fashioned,  was  created  by  the  Almighty  from  no  pre- 
existing materials,  but  simply  by  an  act  of  His  all- powerful  will.  We 
demonstrated  also  that  matter  could  not  be  self-existent,  that  the  only 
self  existent  being  is  God.  We  also  defended  and  vindicated  the  real 
notion  of  a  self-existent  being  from  the  attacks  of  an  ignorant  and  silly 
philosophy,  and  pointed  out  the  prmcipal  attributes  of  God.  We  have 
now  reached  that  stage  in  our  discussion  when  we  can  occupy  ourselves 
about  the  formation  of  the  universe,  or  rather  of  the  inorganic  world." 

Adele. — "Shall  we  discuss  it  according  to  science  ?" 

Doctor.— "To  be  sure.  Our  method  shall  be  to  get  the  best  results  or 
hypotheses  of  science  on  every  subject  under  discussion,  and  after- 
wards we  shall  compare  those  results  or  hypotheses  with  the  respective 
dogmas  of  our  religion,  and  we  shall  find  that  whenever  they  come  in 
contact  no  conflict  or  opposition  whatever  is  to  be  observed  between 
them.  George,  what  does  science  say  upon  the  formation  of  the  inor- 
ganic universe?" 

George.— "It  is  useless  for  me  to  remark  that  science  has  not  as  yet 
ascertained  with  suflScient  certainty  or  evidence  how  the  inorganic 
world  was  formed.  It  has  only  brought  forward  guesses,  conjectures, 
and  hypotheses." 

Adele.— "Why  do  you  take  such  care  to  repeat  with  the  Doetor  the 
epithet  inorganic?" 

George.— "Because,  aa  I  understand  the  Doctor,  he  wants  to  treat 


29 

first  of  the  ioorganic  world,  the  universe,  which  as  yet  does  not  mani- 
fest any  life  in  its  bosom." 

Doctor. — "Precisely.  We  cannot  treat  of  every  question  at  the  same 
time,  therefore  for  the  sake  of  clearness  and  not  to  mix  up  matters  we 
will  speak  first  of  the  lifeless,  inorganic  world,  and  afterward  proceed  to 
treat  of  life  when  we  see  it  springing  up  in  the  universe.  Go  on,  George." 

George.— "Well,  as  I  have  remarked,  science  has  not  pronounced  the 
last  word,  as  the  French  scientists  would  say,  on  the  formation  of  the 
universe.  It  only  offers  hypotheses  and  guesses.  The  most  probable 
among  these  is  the  opinion  of  La  Place,  which  he  developed  and  de- 
fended in  his  book,  'Celestial  Mechanics.' " 

Adele. — "If  we  can  have  no  better  we  will  take  his  opinion." 

Doctor. — "Certainly  La  Place  has  given  upon  the  formation  of  the 
universe  a  very  remarkable  theory  based  upon  mathematical  conclu- 
sions of  the  highest  value,  and  which  the  immense  progress  realized  by 
science,  since  the  great  astronomer,  have  helped  to  confirm,  to  develop, 
and  to  complete." 

George.— "I  will  explain  it  in  my  own  way." 

Adele. —  'Yes,  provided  you  make  it  clear  to  me." 

George. — "Never  fear.  It  has  been  proved  by  mathematical  demon- 
stration, as  well  as  by  observation,  that  all  kinds  of  fluid  mass,  that  is, 
a  mass  whose  molecules  can  slide  one  upon  the  other,  like  liquids  and 
gases,  tend  by  themselves  to  take  a  spherical  form.  Thus  the  bubbles 
of  air  or  gas  which  rise  up  from  the  bottom  of  a  liquid  to  vanish  at 
the  top  upon  the  contact  of  the  surrounding  air;  also  the  drops  of  oil 
projected  into  water  till  the  moment  when  their  specific  lightness 
makes  them  mount  up  and- spread  themselves  over  the  surface ;  also 
the  parts  of  mercury  which  roll  over  a  glass,  the  tiny  drops  of  dew 
hanging  on  the  leaves  of  trees  and  flowers  ;  all  these  take  and  repre- 
sent a  spherical  form  or  shape." 

Adele — "That  is  not  always  true.  Suppose  I  fill  a  glass  or  any 
other  vessel  with  water,  surely  it  does  not  take  a  spherical  form^ 
but  the  form  of  the  vessel  which  contains  it."     ^ 

Doctor. — "The  law  always  holds  good,  Adele;  and  the  instance  to 
the  contrary  does  not  prove  anything.  It  does  happen  sometimes  that 
the  weight  of  the  fluid  mass  and  the  force  of  attraction  which  draws  it 
down  may  surpass  and  overcome  the  eflect  of  the  molecular  attraction. 
But  suppose  any  given  fluid  mass, and  eliminate  from  it  the  influences 
of  all  other  causes,  such  as  the  attraction  exercised  by  the  earth,  the 
sun,  and  the  stars,  which  people  the  universe,  and  such  a  mass,  small 
or  large,  will  always  take  a  spherical  form." 

George. — "Now,  let  us  carry  ourselves  in  thought  to  the  origin  of 
time,  to  the  beginning  spoken  of  in  Genesis.  God  reigns  alone  and 
enjoys  in  Himself  a  boundless  felicity.  No  material  creature  has  as  yet 


30 

troubled,  so  to  speak,  the  silence  and  solitude  of  nothingness  God 
creates.  In  the  bosom  of  nothing  arise  the  atoms,  and  matter  is  already 
existing  in  its  germ.  It  is  nothing  more  than  a  m&ss  of  impercepiible 
and  imponderable  fluids,  so  small  and  so  tiny  that  our  own  hydrogen 
gas,  which  is  fourteen  times  lighter  than  air,  would  seem  to  be  lead  in 
comparison  with  this  first  and  ethereal  essence  of  all  matter.  This  im- 
palpable fluid,  which  senses  a  thousand  times  finer,  more  delicate,  and 
more  piercing  than  ours,  or  uld  not  detect  this  fluid  ;  or,  so  to  speak, 
this  shadow,  or  trace  of  a  fluid,  is  that  which  may  be  supposed  to  con- 
stitute space." 

Adele. — "Pray,  before  you  go  aay  fuBther,  will  you  please  to  tell 
me:  Poes  this  imponderable  fluid — which  is  supposed  to  be  material, 
of  course — rest  on  any  place?  Does  anything  uphold  it?  In  one  word, 
where  is  it  located  ?" 

Doctor. — "Sporlingly,  Adele,  you  have  raised  a  very  difficulfc  ques- 
tion, but  this  is  the  place  to  dispose  of  it,  and  we  may  as  well  do  so. 
You  must  understand  that  it  is  not  necessary  to  the  essence  and  pro- 
perties of  a  body  to  be  located  in  any  place.  Suppose  God  had  created 
one  single  atom,  where  would  this  atom  be  located  ?  Nowhere.  Where 
would  it  bt  ?  In  itself.  What  would  uphold  it  ?  God's  infinite  power. 
This,  I  admit,  id  hird  to  understand,  and  it  surpasses  the  power  of 
language  to  express  how  many  errors  and  fictions  have  passed  through 
the  brains  even  of  scientists  as  to  this  point ;  but  after  all  the  thing  is 
very  simple.  Either  we  must  admit  that  a  body  which  is  a  mas-j  of 
molecules,  or  a  group  of  atoms  which  forms  a  molecule,  or  an  atom 
itself,  must  be  conceded  to  be  able  to  exist  in  itself.irrespectively  of  any 
other  body  or  molecule  or  atom  wherein  it  may  be  located,  or  the  ex- 
istence of  an  atom  is  impossible.  Because  the  existence  of  an  atom 
necessarily  requiring  another  atom  to  be  located  in  it,  would  imply  a 
number  of  atoms  actually  infinite,  which  is  absurd." 

Adele.— "Why  ?" 

Doctor. — "Because  if  one  atom  cannot  exist  without  another  on 
which  to  rest,  this  second  would  require  a  third,  the  third  a  fourth,  and 
so  on  forever,  and  either  you  would  never  stop,  or,  to  stop,  you  would 
require  a  number  of  atoms  actually  infinite,  which  we  have  seen  is  an 
impos.-ibility." 

George.— "Dear  me.  Doctor!  you  have  lifted  a  load  off"  my  mind. 
I  never  understood  space  till  this  moment,  because  I  always  imagined 
that  a  body  must  be  located  necessarily  in  another  body,  and  therefore 
I  could  never  explain  to  myself  what  space  is,  and  could  only  fashion 
to  myself  monstrous,  immense,  boundless  phantoms;  where  located,  if 
at  all,  I  did  not  and  could  not  conceive.  I  see  now  what  floods  of  light 
Catholic  philosophy  can  shed  upon  the  most  diflicuU  and  intric.ite 
questions.  We  will  then  suppose  that  an  imponderable  and  impalpable 


31 

fluid  which  forms  space  ia  located  nowhere,  but  exists  in  itself,  upheld 
by  the  creative  hand  of  God.  Now  let  us  take  any  of  the  pi  ints  of  the 
space  at  random.  Two  atoms  meet  and  join  tngrether ;  they  thus  united 
form  a  mass  larger  than  <.heir  own  separate  mass.  Immediately  the  law 
of  universal  gravitation  goes  into  oflTect.  The  atoms  nearer  to  this  group, 
this  first  nucleus,  are  attracted  towards  it,  adhere  to  it,  and  form  a 
more  considerable  mass,  say  a  molecule;  at  any  rate,  an  infinitesimal 
sphere  of  attraction.  Once  the  movement  commenced,  nothing  will 
stop  it.  It  will  go  on  increasing,  the  centre  of  attraction  growing  in 
power  by  the  fall  of  the  atoms  which  enhance  its  mass;  these  are  at- 
tracted and  precipitated  with  force  directly  proportionate  to  the  mass 
tner  on  the  increase.  In  consequence  of  thin  number  of  light  shocks 
on  all  the  points  of  this  sphere  in  the  process  of  formation,  the  latter 
yields  to  a  movement  of  rotation  upon  itself.  It  revolves  on  its  axis, 
never  ceasing  to  attract  the  atoms  nearest  to  it  and  spread  through 
the  ether,  or  the  atoms  on  its  surface  towards  its  own  centre.  Thus  its 
intensity  grows  from  the  surface  to  the  centre  at  the  same  time  that  its 
vulume  extends  from  nearer  to  nearer." 

A  dele.— "You  could  not  describe  this  process  of  formation  better 
than  if  you  had  been  present  at  the  scene.  How  old  are  you,  Mr. 
George  ?" 

Doctor. — "Go  on,  George,  and  don't  mind  her." 
George. — "This  phenomenon,  ever  going  on  and  increasing  in  velo- 
city during  thousands  of  centuries,  this  sphere,  fluid-form,  will,  in  the 
ei  d,  occupy  an  immense  volume.  Then,  in  consequence  of  the  cen- 
irifugal  force,  which  tends  to  throw  off  at  a  (iistance  the  parts  more 
distant  from  the  axis  of  rotation,  a  time  will  come  whtn  this  sphere 
will  extend  itself  and  grow  in  diameter  on  the  plane  of  the  great 
circle  perpendicular  to  its  axis,  whilst  diminishing  in  the  direction  of 
this  axis.  Flattened  at  the  poles  and  increasing  at  the  equator,  it  will 
pass  from  the  spherical  form  to  the  spheroidical  and  elliptical  form  to 
make  a  distinct  whole,  a  gaseous  mass,  an  immense  lens,  the  smallest 
diameter  of  which  could  only  be  measured  by  milliards  of  miles." 

Adele. — "Dear  me,  I  can  hardly  fancy  the  immense  and  colossal 
proportions  of  such  a  vast  spheroid  swimming  and  floating  in  ether." 
George. — "It  is  a  law  well  established  in  natural  philosophy  that 
movement,  light,  heat,  magnetism,  and  electricity,  are  different  mani- 
test-itions  of  the  same  agent;  movement  is  tranformed  into  heat; 
heat  into  light,  etc.  This  is  called  the  law  of  the  equivalence  between 
movemeat  and  heat.  Therefore,  the  time  will  come  when  this  gaseous 
sphere,  heated  by  the  ever-increasing  movements  of  its  atoms  and  of 
its  molecules  towards  the  centre,  and  of  its  mass  around  its  axis,  will 
become  luminous.  It  will  be  at  first  a  shadowy  glimmer,  vagr.e,  unde- 
cided, hardly  phosphorescent,  indistinct  from  darkness,  less  marked 


32 

than  the  imperceptible  glimmer  of  certain  nights  of  summer  known 
as  the  zodiacal  light.  But  it  will  go  on  increaging.  Increasing  also  in 
density,  the  central  mass  will  go  gradually  contrac  ing,  and  diminish 
in  volume.  However,  the  force  of  inertia  will  preserve  to  each  of  its 
parts,  to  each  of  its  atoms,  the  velocity  acquired  in  the  movement  of  ro- 
tation ;  from  which  it  follows  that  this  velocity,  being  exercised  inces- 
santly in  accordance  with  a  circumference  more  or  less  restricced,  the 
movement  of  rotation  will  go  on  increasing.  In  consequence  of  euch 
increase  of  the  rotatory  movement,  a  movement  will  arise  when  the 
centripetal  force,  that  is,  the  force  which  tends  to  hurry  the  atoms  and 
molecules  toward  the  centre,  is  overcome  by  the  centrifugal  force  at 
the  circumference  of  the  equatorial  circle.  A  ring  is  then  detached 
from  the  ellipsoidal,  which  will  find  itself  reduced  to  the  sphericil 
form.  This  ring,  though  detached  from  the  principal  mass,  continues 
its  movement,  and  turns  around  the  spheroidal,  which  has  originated 
it.  It  is  not  absolutely  even  as  to  its  intensity  and  volume  in  all  its 
parts  ;  but  it  exhibits  a  little  swelling  on  one  point ;  a  little  shrinkage 
on  another;  it  narrows  down  on  its  weakest  point,  as  far  as  to  crack, 
in  order  to  concentrate  on  the  opposite  side.  The  ring  thus  becomes  a 
crescent,  whose  two  horns  incessantly  endeavor  to  approach  the  swell- 
ing, upon  which,  in  consequence  of  the  same  eflbrt,  they  impress  a 
rotatory  movement  around  itself.  Soon,  however,  mixing  with  it,  they 
end  in  rendering  the  primitive  ring  a  new  sphere,  immense  in  itself, 
but  small  in  relation  to  the  original  sphere,  around  which  it  moves, 
as  well  as  upon  its  axis.  Things  happened  on  this  second  sphere  in 
the  same  manner  as  in  the  original  one,  though  in  much  less  time,  in 
consequence  of  the  smallness  of  the  mass  and  volume  of  the  new  globe. 
In  the  course  of  myriads  of  centuries  the  original  spheroid,  being 
concentrated  and  condensed  more  and  more,  throws  off  another  ring, 
and  then  a  third,  and  so  on.  Each  of  these  rings  becomes  a  satellite 
spheroid,  which,  being  capable  of  throwing  off  rings  detached  at  its 
equator,  can  engender  other  subordinate  satellites.  Thus  has  been 
formed  the  planet  Neptune,  with  one  satellite ;  Uranus  with  its  four 
satellites;  Saturn,  encircled  by  a  triple  ring,  concentric  to  the  exterior 
orbits  of  its  eight  moons.  All  the  planets  which  gravitate  around  the 
sun,  like  our  earth,  have  been  thus  detached  successively  from  the  origi- 
nal spheroidal  nebula  set  in  motion  by  the  action  of  God  Almighty." 

Doctor. — "Very  good  indeed,  George.  You  have  explained  the 
hypothesis  of  the  formation  of  the  universe  as  clearly  as  could  be  done. 
But  I  want  to  recapitulate  the  whole  theory,  to  make  it  easier  for  Adele 
to  understand." 

Adele. — "I  am  sure  I  am  very  much  obliged." 

Doctor. — "Well,  George,  tell  us  how  the  atoms  are  joined  together 
to  form  the  original  colossal  nebula." 


33 

George.— "The  law  of  universal  gravitation  brings  the  first  atoms 
together  and  forma  the  primary  mass,  which  goes  on  increasing  as 
other  atoms  are  attracted,  and  as  the  mass  increases." 

Doctor.— "And  what  gives  the  first  mass  a  rotatory  motion,  that  is, 
a  motion  around  itself?" 

Gt'orno.  — "  The  rotatory  motion  is  produced  by  all  those  little 
shocks  which  it  receives  from  the  atoms  which  are  precipitated  upon  it 
on  every  side  with  a  force  and  violence  proportionate  to  the  mass  which 
attracts  them." 

Doctor. — "How  is  the  sphere  changed  into  a  spheroid  ?" 

George. — "The  centrifugal  force  causes  the  parts  more  distant  from 
the  axis  of  rotation  to  push  off,  and  a  moment  arrives  when  the  sphere 
swells  towards  the  equator  and  na-rrows  and  flittens  down  at  the  poles. 
This  gives  it  a  spheroidal  form." 

Doctor. — "How  is  it  that  it  becomes  luminous  ?" 

George. — "By  the  law  that  all  the  forces  of  nature  can  be  reduced 
to  movement,  that  is,  by  the  law  of  the  correlation  and  equivalence  of 
forces.  Movement  under  a  certain  condition  becomes  heat;  heat  be- 
comes light.  A  time,  therefore,  will  arrive  in  the  life  of  the  nebulosa 
when,  being  heated  by  a  movement  ever  increasing  in  rapidity,  it 
will  pass  to  the  luminous  state." 

Doctor. — "What  increases  the  velocity  of  the  spheroid  ?" 

George. — "The  contraction  which  it  undergoes  in  its  mass  and  vol 
ume,  in  consequence  of  its  becoming  denser  and  denser.  The  volume, 
therefore,  being  diminished,  the  movement  of  rotation  becomes  more 
rapid." 

Doctor. — "What  causes  a  ring  to  be  thrown  oflf  from  the  original 
mass  of  the  spheroid  ?" 

George. — "The  increase  in  the  velocity  and  rapidity  of  its  move- 
ment by  the  contraction  of  its  mass  will  cause,  at  some  time  or  other, 
the  centrifugal  force  to  overcome  the  centripetal,  and  hence  a  ring 
will  be  detached  from  the  original  mass.  This  ring  will  undergo  the 
same  process  as  the  original  mass." 

Doctor. — "You  could  not  recapitulate  more  accurately  the  explana- 
tion of  theory.  I  will  .idd,  to  finish  our  conversation  and  to  complete 
the  theory,  that  thousands  and  millions  of  attractive  centres  have  been 
formed  under  the  diviue  impulse  in  the  infinite  cosmical  depths  pro- 
ducfd  by  the  creative  word.  Thou  ands  and  millions  of  partial  nebu- 
lose  have  been  thus  developed  from  more  than  gigantic  clusters  of 
complex  uebulose ;  and  to  day,  aided  by  the  spectroscope,  the  telescope 
of  astronomers  discovers,  in  the  most  inaccessible  depths  of  the  in- 
finite, nebu  lose  of  every  dimension  and  of  every  form,  and  ,t  any  de- 
gree of  development.  Thus  has  the  universe  been  formn  p(^  con- 
tinues to  be  formed." 


S4 

Adele.— "The  whole  hypothesis  is  a  beautiful  and  grand  idea- 
Would  that  it  were  confirmed  by  facts  and  observations." 

George. — "It  is  coherent  in  every  one  of  its  parts,  and  conformable 
to  all  the  laws  so  far  discovered.  At  any  rate,  science  at  the  present  haa 
nothing  better  to  offer,  and  we  must  rest  content." 

Adele. — "And  novy  I  want  to  describe  the  whole  formation  of  the 
universe  in  my  own  way,  and  see  if  I  cannot  do  better  than  Mr, 
George." 

George. — "Let  us  see." 

Adele. — "Why,  I  suppose  an  immense  quantity  of  tiny,  small,  little 
things  called  atoms,  all  floating  in  that  imponderable  fluid  called  ether. 
Am  I  right  so  far  in  assuming  that  such  were  the  first  elements  out  of 
which  the  universe  was  to  be  formed  ?" 

George. — "Perfectly." 

Adele.— "Very  well.  How  am  I  to  make  them  join  together  so  as 
to  exhibit  one  mass  ?  Easily  enough,  if  y/e  call  into  play  the  law  of  at- 
traction. This  law  causes  the  two  first  atoms  which  are  nearest  to  each 
other  to  be  attracted  together  and  come  closer  one  against  the  other. 
As  the  mass  increases  in  bulk  it  increases  its  attraction,  and  other 
atoms  come  to  join  company,  and  so  forth  until  an  immense  mass  is  the 
result." 

Doctor.— "Very  good,  indeed." 

Adele. — "Now  I  must  set  that  mass  in  motion  ;  must  I  not  ?  No,  I 
must  first  remark  that  all  those  atoms  arrange  themselves  in  a  splieri- 
cal  or  round  form ;  that  we  know  by  experience  of  fluid  bodies.  Well, 
the  fall  of  so  many  atoms  on  the  original  mass  of  two  on  every  side 
give  it  a  shock  on  all  sides,  and  hence  the  rotatory  motion  of  the  origi- 
nal sphere.  This  motion  is  quickened  and  quickened  until  that  im- 
mense mass  not  only  becomes  luminous,  but  also,  in  consequence  of 
the  centrifugal  law,  some  parts  more  distant  from  the  axis  of  the  rota- 
tion are  thrown  off,  and  a  new  ring  is  formed  which,  on  account  of  the 
law  of  inertia,  retains  its  rotatory  movement,  and  thus  a  new  star  or 
planet  or  satellite  is  formed,  and  so  on  without  end.  There !  You 
have  the  whole  thing  in  a  nutshell." 


SIXTH  ARTICLE. 

TRUE  SIDE  OF  THE  SYSTEM  OF  EVOLUTION. 

George. — "Doctor,  we  talked  over  the  hypothesis  of  La  Place  and 
other  eminent  scientists  upon  the  formation  of  the  universe.  Now,  I 
want  to  know  if  a  Christian  can,  coneistently  with  his  belief,  hold  and 
maintain  such  an  hypothesis  ?" 

Adele. — "I  was  going  to  put  the  same  question." 


35 

Doctor. — "To  be  sure  he  can.  What  should  prevent  a  ChriotiAn 
from  maintaining  the  hypothesis  of  La  Place  ?" 

Gjorge. — "Well,  I  don't  exactly  know.  It  seems  to  me  that  La 
Places'  hypothesis  iitt plies  the  truth  of  evolution." 

Adele.— "How  ?" 

George. — "Don't  you  fee  that  according  to  that  hypothesis  we  siavi 
from  a  few  atoms  which  float  in  ether,  and  which,  by  the  law  of  attrac- 
tion, come  together  to  form  a  molecule,  and  this  attracts  more  atoms 
or  molecules  until  the  whole  thing  starts  into  a  rotatory  movement  in 
consequence  of  the  shocks  it  receives  from  all  points  from  the  atoms 
falling  on  it,  and  by  the  continued  motion  of  myriads  of  years  ;  and 
by  the  ever-increasing  attraciion  it  swells  into  an  immense  rebulosa, 
the  proportions  of  which  defy  the  power  of  the  strongest  mind  to  im- 
agine. Then  this  sinie  immense  nebulosa,  being  acted  upon  in  the 
course  of  other  myriads  of  centuries  by  the  law. of  centrifugal  force, 
throws  ofl  ring  after  ring  to  form  the  starry  worlds  whose  name  is 
legion.  This  is  merely  evolution  from  the  minimum  to  the  maxi- 
mum." 

Adele. — "I  see  now." 

Doctor.— "Well,  and  what  then?  You  imagine  two  things, George. 
First,  that  evolution  of  one  kind  implies  the  truth  of  the  whole  system 
of  evolution.  Second,  you  seem  to  believe  that  the  Church  condemns 
all  kinds  of  evolution.  Now,  both  these  two  mistakes  require  to  be  set 
right." 

Adele. — "With  your  leave,  I  would  like  to  have  the  terms  ex- 
plained to  me  before  we  go  any  further.  Gentlemen,  I  have  a  certain 
kind  of  an  idea  ae  to  evolution,  but  I  would  like  to  form  an  adequate 
conception  of  it." 

Doctor.— "Well,  "Ilbten  to  me,  both.  There  are  thr^e  systems  of 
evolution,  two  of  them  false  and  one  true.  The  first  is  what  may  be 
called  evolution  in  its  most  oompjrehensive  and  universal  sense,  and 
may  be  defined  as  that  system  which  holds  that  everything  in  the  uni- 
verse T/as  evolved  from  the  minimum,  or  the  least  kind  of  being. 
Suppose  an  atom  of  such  insignificance  as  to  be  almost  akin  to  no- 
thing, and  suppose,  moreover,  that  not  only  all  the  myriads  of  worlds 
of  the  mineral  kind  were  evolved  out  of  that  infinitely  small  atom,  but 
also  that  life  sprang  out  of  it ;  not  life  limited  to  the  vegetable  kind,  but 
also  sensitive  life,  intellectual  life  of  the  highest  and  the  supreme  kind; 
this  would  be  evolution  in  the  first  sense  in  its  most  universal  accep- 
tation. This  is  the  system  of  Herbert  Spencer,  and  in  fact  of  all  pan- 
theists who  do  not  differ  from  each  other  except  on  the  nature  and 
kind  of  that  infinitesimal  small  beginning.  For  those  who  hold  that 
beginning  to  be  matter,  iike  Herbert  Spencer  and  others,  are  called 
material  paptheista  ;  those  who  hold  it  to  be  an  idea  are  called  ideal- 


36 

ists  ;  ihose  who  maintain  it  to  be  an  idea  and  something  together  are 
called  by  other  names  " 

Adele. — "I  understand  perfectly." 

Doctor. — "The  second  kind  of  evolution  is  that  which  makes  all 
kinds  of  life  be  evolved  and  drawn,  as  it  were,  out  of  protoplasm." 

Adele. — "What  is  a  protoplasm  ?" 

Doctor. — "Protoplasm,  or,  as  Huxley  calls  it,  the  physical  basis  ol 
life,  is  a  certain  amount  of  matter  which  science  observes  to  be  the 
necessary  foundation  of  all  life.  As  the  foundation  of  all  kinds  of  living 
things,  a  certain  amount  of  oxygen,  hydrogen,  carbon  and  nitrogen  is 
necessary.  These  substances,  however,  to  constitute  protoplasm  and  to 
be  the  foundation  or  basis  of  all  life,  must  be  combined  by  nature, 
which  alone  has  the  secret.  No  artificial  or  scientific  combination  or 
manipulation  of  those  substances  has  ever  been  able  to  produce  an  in- 
finitesimal amount  of  protoplasm.  You  must  be  satisfied  for  the  pres- 
ent with  this  amount  of  information,  as  we  shall  return  to  the  subject. 
Now,  evolution,  in  &  more  restricted  sense,  is  that  system  which  teaches 
that  all  kinds  of  life,  vegetable,  sensitive,  or  animal,  even  intellectual 
life,  orginates  in  and  is  developed  out  of  protoplasm.  This  is  the  sys- 
tem of  evolution  more  generally  embraced.  The  third  and  true  sys- 
tem of  evolution  is  that  which  admits  distinct  species  in  creation — or 
distinct  kingdoms,  as  some  would  call  them — the  mineral,  the  vege- 
table, the  sensitive  and  the  intellectual.  In  coner quence  of  this  doctrine 
it  allows  any  amount  of  evolution  and  development  within  the  species, 
but  denies  that  the  evolution  or  development  may  arrive  to  that  point 
that  one  species  may  develop  into  another.  Thus,  for  instance,  it 
willingly  grants  that  the  first  mineral  substances  created  by  the  Al- 
mighty, acting  under  the  influence  and  the  pressure  of  the  laws  estab- 
libhed  by  Him,  can  develop  into  the  magnificent  worlds  which  are 
rolling  in  space ;  but  denies  that  those  same  mineral  substances  can 
develop  themselves  so  far  or  combine  in  such  a  way,  by  their  own  un- 
aided efibrts,  and  under  the  same  physical  laws,  as  to  spring  into  life 
and  be  transformed  into  the  vegetable  world.  This  kind  of  evolution 
within  the  species  is  taught  by  all  Christian  philosophers  and  theolo- 
gians, and  by  true  scientists,  and  it  is  that  which  is  demanded  by  the 
law  which  God  follows  in  the  creation  and  government  of  the  world, 
and  which  is  called  the  law  of  wisdom." 

George. — "Will  you  please  to  explain  this  law.  Doctor  ?" 

Doctor. — "The  law  of  wisdom  is  simply  the  law  of  reason  and  com- 
mon sense,  and  that  is  that  an  intelligent  being  should  not  act  except 
for  a  reason  which  accounts  for  his  act ;  if  one  acts  without  a  reason,  or 
a  reason  not  sullicient  to  account  for  his  act,  he  is  said,  by  the  common 
consent  of  mankind,  to  have  acted  foolishly  and  not  as  an  intelligent 
being.'' 


Adele. — "But  don't  »ve  perform  many  actions  without  any  rensnn 
at  all  ?" 

Doctor. — "Oftentimes  we  have  the  reason  for  what  we  do,  only  we 
are  not  conscious  of  it.  But  suppose  we  do  something  without  a  rt-aaon, 
then  we  don't  act  as  reasonable  or  intelligent  bein,t;rt.  This  can  happen 
as  to  man,  who  is  an  f>nimal  besides  being  reasonable,  but  can  never 
happen  as  to  God." 

Adele.— "Why?" 

Doctor. — "Because  God  is  intelligence  and  reason  itself.  If  He 
could  act  unreasonably  He  would  act  against  his  nature,  which  is  im- 
possible." 

George. —  I  see." 

Doctor. — "Now,  this  law  of  doing  a  thing  always  for  a  euflicient 
reason,  when  applied  to  finding  a  proportion  between  an  end  and  the 
means  which  must  obtain  that  end,  is  expressed  by  saying  that  the  law 
of  wisdom  is  to  follow  the  minimum  means  to  an  end.  For  instance, 
you  want  to  go  to  a  certain  place.  You  must  take  the  shortest  road, 
which  is  the  straight  one,  otherwise  any  amount  of  walking  other  than 
is  claimed  by  the  straight  road  is  superfluous,  over  and  above,  without 
a  reason,  and  foolish."' 

Adele. — "I  don't  see  how  all  this  applies  to  evolution." 

Doctor. — 'Listen.  God  has  created  the  first  substances,  which  are 
also  forces.  It  behooves  His  wisdom  to  let  thoie  forces  be  exercised 
and  developed  into  anything  of  which  they  are  capable  hy  their  nature 
and  by  the  physical  laws  which  govern  them.  If  by  allowing  those 
forces  full  play  they  can  develop  themselves  into  the  immense  worlds 
we  so  much  admire,  they  should  be  allowed  to  do  so,  and  it  would  be 
wasting  energy  and  power  to  aid  them  in  what  they  ca:i  do  by  them- 
selves ;  it  would  be  contrary  to  wisdom  to  do  what  they  can  do  unaided. 
God's  wisdom,  therefore,  obliges  Him,  so  to  speak,  not  to  interfere  in 
the  development  of  the  natural  forces,  except  only  when  an  end  is  to 
be  obtained  which  they  could  not  themselves  bring  about." 

Adele. — 'I  understand  now.  If  all  the  primitive  matter  under  the 
laws  of  gravitation,  of  inertia,  of  centripetal  and  centrifugal  forces 
could  be  evolved  into  the  myriads  and  tens  of  myriads  of  stars  which 
c<tud  the  heavenly  space,  they  must  be  allowed  to  do  so ;  to  add  strength, 
or  energy,  or  power  to  them,  would  not  make  those  stars  more  vast 
nor  more  beautiful;  it  would  be  a  waste  of  energy,  a  foolish  throwing 
away  of  power." 

Doctor. — "This  is  true  evolution.  But  suppose  that  we  want  lite  to 
appear  in  those  grand  worlds,  and  suppose,  for  the  present,  that  no 
amount  of  self-development  of  the  mineral  kiugriom  couid  produce 
life,  then  what  is  to  be  done  ?' 

George. — "I  suppose  it  requiiea  an  act  of  tlie  Creator,  an  interven- 


tion  of  the  first  cause,  to  supply  what  is  lacking  in  the  mineral  sub- 
stances  in  order  that  they  may  spring  into  life." 

Doctor. — "It  is  so  ;  if  no  amount  of  unfolding  of  the  mineral  king- 
dom can,  on  the  supposition,  spring  into  life,  then  if  life  be  wanted  an 
act  of  the  Creator  must,  by  its  fiat,  evoke  life  out  of  the  mineral  king- 
aom,  supplying  whatever  mysterious  ageucy  is  required  to  exhibit  and 
represent  the  phenomena  of  life." 

George. — "Then,  if  I  understated  aright,  Catholic  theology  not  only 
admits  evolution  within  the  species,  hut  absolutely  requires  it,  on  the 
ground  that  the  wisdom  of  God,  which  creates  and  governs  the  uni- 
verse, is  bound  to  follow  the  essential  law  of  its  nature;  law  which  is 
expressed  in  difTerent  ways,  as,  for  instance,  that  one  should  act  for  a 
sufficient  reason  ;  that  one  should  use  the  minimum  means lo  an  end; 
that  in  the  use  of  force  no  amount  of  it  should  be  allowed  to  go  to 
waste,  and  so  forth.  This  law,  so  variously  expressed,  applied  to  the 
present  sulgect,  clearly  indicates  that  if  God  had  created  substances 
which  were  at  the  same  same  time  able  to  act,  and  subjected  these  forces 
to  certain  laws,  after  having  given  them  the  first  impetus  to  action,  it 
behooved  His  wisdc^m  to  let  those  forces  have  full  play  and  develop- 
ment, and  let  them  be  evolved  into  whatever  they  could  produce; 
God's  action  and  influence  upon  them  being  limited  only  to  whatever 
is  necessary  to  be  supplied  by  the  first  caut-e  to  enable  secondary 
causes  to  act." 

Adele. — "I  don't  understand  the  last  clausfe  of  your  speech,  Mr. 
George." 

Doctor. — "I  will  explain  it  to  you,  Adele  .A  creature  is,  by  its  own 
nature  of  creature,  a  finite  being,  iudiflferent  to  be  or  not  to  be,  be- 
cause if  it  were  not  so  it  would  be  necessary ;  its  existence  would  be 
required  absolutely  by  its  own  essence  and  nature ;  in  one  word,  it 
would  no  longer  be  a  creature,  but  God.  Now,  if  a  finite  being  is  in- 
diflerent  to  be  and  not  to  be,  even  after  being  created,  it  does  not  by 
that  fact  change  its  nature ;  it  remains  naturally  indifierent  to  be  or  not 
to  be  ;  again,  it  must  be  also  indifierent  to  act  or  not  to  act,  because, 
if  it  were  not  so,  it  would  be  already  in  act,  and  always  in  act,  and  never 
with  the  possibility  to  act;  in  other  words,  it  would  be  God  again. 
Three  moments  of  God's  actions  are  required,  in  order  that  the  creature 
may  act :  Ist.  that  moment  which  creates  the  substance ;  2nd,  that 
moment  which  continues  to  keep  it  in  existence ;  3>1,  thac  moment 
which  brings  the  creature  from  the  possibility  to  the  very  fact  of  act- 
ing. This  is  absolutely  necpssary  for  any  creature  to  act.  This  God 
■must  always  supply.  After  supposing  that,  we  by  all  mrnr.s  must  admit 
that  God  let  each  species  develop  itself  as  much  as  possible,  and  this  is 
called  evolution  within  the  species.  And  we  will,  if  you  please,  stop 
here  for  the  present." 


39 

Adele. — '"But  shall  we  not  discuss  the  other  two  kinds  of  evolu- 
tion ?" 

Doctor. — "Yes,  in  its  own  proper  time.  The  subject  which  will 
claim  our  immediuic  mtentiou  is  the  history  of  the  formation  of  the 
planet  in  which  we  have  the  honor  to  be  located." 


SEVENTH  ARTICLE. 

HISTORY  OF  THE  FORMATION  OF  THE  EARTH. 

Adele. — "Doctor,  our  next  subject,  if  I  remember  rightly,  was  to  be 
the  history  of  the  formation  of  the  earth.  How  am  I  to  understand 
tliat  ?' 

Doctor. — "Very  easily  ;  we  said  that  our  earth  w;ia  a  ring  detached 
from  tlie  original  mass  of  matter,  or  che  nebulosa  in  which  all  the  stars 
and  planets  have  originated.  Very  well;  we  want  to  follow  up  the  pro- 
cess which  the  earth  had  to  undergo  from  the  moment  its  original 
matter  was  thrown  off  from  the  nebulosa,  up  to  the  time  when  it  took 
a  proper  solid  form,  and  was  ready  for  life." 

Adele. — "In  other  words,  I  suppose  you  would  call  its  being  de- 
tached from  the  original  mass  the  birth  of  the  earth,  and  then  the 
process  it  had  to  unr'ergo  you  would  style  Its  infancy,  its  youth  and  its 
manhood,  so  to  speak." 

Doctor. — "Precisely.  Now,  George,  I  understand  you  are  well  up 
in  astronomy  and  geology.  Please  let  us  have  the  histoi-y  of  the  forma- 
tion of  the  earth  '' 

Adele. — "Wait  one  second.  I  decline — respectfully,  of  course — to 
hear  anything  on  the  subject  unless  Tarn  promised  that  I  shall  hear  no 
strange,  uncouth  names,  such  as  I  was  obliged  to  listen  to  when  I  was 
in  the  seminary.  Why,  my  head  aches  at  the  very  thought  of  that 
ordeal." 

George. — "Xever  .^ear,  Miss  Adele,  I  will  put  everything,  as  far  as  1 
can,  in  honest,  straightforward,  genuine  Christian  language.  Will  tb«f 
do  ?" 

Adele. — "Provided  you  keep  your  word." 

Doctor.— "You  will  understand  better,  Adele,  if  George  will  allow 
me  to  put  him  question  after  question." 

George. — "Certainly." 

Doctor. — "Well,  in  what  state  was  the  earth  the  moment  it  was  de- 
tached from  the  original  mass  of  matter  ?" 

George. — "It  was  in  a  luminous  and  incandescent  state,  like  the 
mass  from  which  it  was  detached." 

Doctor. — "What  happened  to  it  next?" 

George. — "In  the  course  of  centuries  the  cold  of  the  spaces  between 


40 

the  stars  affected  the  incandescent  mass  of  the  earth,  and  reduced  it 
from  the  state  of  gas  to  the  liquid  state." 

Adele, — "What  do  you  mean  by  the  cold  of  the  spaces  between 
the  stars  ?" 

George. —  'Did  we  not  in  one  of  our  conversations  say  that  what 
we  call  space  is  formed  by  ether  vihich  God  created  at  fit s^  and  with 
which  He  filled,  so  to  speak,  the  immense  void  ?  Well,  we  will  suppose 
the  original  mass  of  substances  which  formed  the  nebuloba  to  have 
occupied  part  of  that  space.  Ring  after  ring  is  thrown  oti"  from  that 
original  mass,  each  one  of  which  takes  its  place  at  a  distance  from  the 
nebulosa  and  from  the  other  rings.  It  is  evident  that  there  aie  empty 
spaces  between  the  original  mass  and  the  rings,  and  between  one  ring 
and  the  others.  These  spaces  are  called  intermediary  spaces,  cr  spaces 
between  the  starj  or  rings.  Now  these  spaces,  being  void  of  all  heat, 
necessarily  transmit  their  cold  to  the  rings  which  they  surround,  and, 
gradually  aflfect  them.  Thus  it  happened  to  the  earth,  and  from  its 
heated  and  incandescent  state  oi  gas  it  was  turned  into  an  incandes- 
cent and  liquid  mass  of  fire." 

Doctor. — "What  was  the  next  step  in  the  formation  of  our  planet  ?" 
George. — "The  whole  mass,  having  become  liquid  through  the 
gradual  cooling  of  its  molecules,  would  be  changed  into  a  sea  of  lava 
whirliog  around  in  space;  but  this  state  was  one  of  transition.  After 
an  indbtjuite  number  of  centuries  the  loss  of  heat  was  sufficient  to 
cause  a  formation  ol  a  light  covering,  or  scoria,  like  a  thin  sheet  of 
ice  over  the  suiface  of  the  fiery  sea.  This  first  scoria  was  succeeded  by 
a  second,  and  then  by  others  ;  next  they  would  unite  into  continents 
floating  on  the  surface  of  the  lava,  and  finally  would  cover  the  whole 
circumferenoe  of  the  planet  with  a  continuous  layer.  A  thin  but  solid 
crutt  would  then  have  held  and  imprisoned  within  it — an  immense 
burning  sea."^' 

Doctor. — "Did  that  crust  remain  unbroken  ?" 
George. — "It  was  frequently  broken  through  by  the  lava  boiling 
beneath  it,  and  then  was  again  united,  the  cooling  process  also  tending 
to  slowly  thicken  it.  Finally,  after  millions  of  centuries,  it  became  so 
firm  that  the  eruptions  of  the  liquid  mass  within  ceased  to  be  a  general 
phenomenon,  only  taking  place  occasionally  and  where  the  crust  was 
thinnest.  The  surrounding  atmosphere,  impregnated  with  vapors  and 
various  substances  maintained  by  the  extreme  heat  in  a  gaseous  state, 
would  gradually  get  rid  of  its  burden ;  all  kinds  of  matter,  one  after 
another,  would  become  detached  from  the  burning  aerial  mass,  and 
precipitate  themselves  on  the  solid  crust  of  the  planet.  When  the 
temperature  wj.s  lowered  sufficiently  to  enable  it  to  pass  from  the 
gaseous  to  a  liquid  state,  metals  and  other  substances  would  fall  down 
in  a  fiery  rain  on  the  terrestrial  lava." 


41 

Doctor. — "What  would  be  likely  lo  happen  next?" 

George. — "Next,  the  »team  contined  entirely  to  higher  regions  of 
the  gaseous  mass  would  he  condensed  into  an  immense  layer  of  cloud, 
iuot'ssantly  furri>wed  by  lightning  ;  drops  of  water,  the  conime.:cement 
('I  the  atmosphere  oceau,  would  begin  to  fall  down  toward  the  ground, 
but  only  to  become  vapor  on  their  way  and  again  aecend ;  finally, 
there  little  drops  reached  the  surface  of  the  terrestrial  scoria,  the  tempe- 
rature of  the  water  much  exceeding  100°,  owing  to  the  enormous  pres- 
sure exerci-ed  by  the  heavy  air  of  those  ages,  and  the  first  pool,  the 
rudiment  of  a  great  sea,  was  collected  in  some  fissure  of  the  lava.  This 
pool  was  constantly  increased  by  fresh  falls  of  water,  and  ultimately 
surrounded  nearly  the  whole  of  the  terrestrial  crust  with  a  liquid  cover- 
ing ;  but  at  the  same  time  it  brought  with  it  fresh  elements  of  future 
continents.  The  numerous  substances  which  the  water  held  in  solu- 
tion formed  various  combinations  with  the  metals  and  soils  of  its  bed  ; 
the  currents  and  tempests  which  agitated  it  destroyed  its  shores  only 
to  form  nev/  ones;  the  sediment  deposited  at  the  bottom  of  the  water 
commenced  the  series  of  rocks  and  strata  w-hich  follow  one  another 
above  the  primitive  crust." 

Doctor. — "Thus — to  capitulate  ail  that  George  has  said — you  see 
before  you,  Adele,  a  vast  sphere  of  water,  an  ocean  without  shore,  rest- 
ing on  a  basis  of  granite  gneiss,  etc;  a  basis  hardly  consolidated  and 
quivering  under  the  ignited  liquid  which  rages  in  its  bosom  ;  above 
this  boundless  ocean  an  immense  atmosphere  very  thick  and  opaque, 
according  to  all  probability  the  theatre  of  continual  phenomena  of 
magnetism,  electricity  and  meteoric  light.  Such  is  the  state  of  the 
earth  at  the  period  at  which  we  have  arrived." 

Adele. — "Now,  gentlemen,  will  you  please  to  tell  me,  are  all  these 
things  you  have  narrated  quite  certain  and  demonstrated,  or  have 
you  imagined  them  ?" 

George.— "We  have  proceeded,  Miss  Adele,  on  the  nebular  hypo- 
thesis of  La  Place,  which  of  course  is  only  an  hypothesis.  As  we  can- 
not have  certainty  and  scientific  demoru^tration,  we  must  take  that 
supposition  which  best  explains  the  formation  of  the  universe.  Upon 
that  hypothesis,  then,  we  have  considered  the  earth  as  a  ring  thrown 
off  from  that  immense  burning  mass  of  gases.  Now,  considering  that 
ring,  the  nucleus  of  our  earth,  to  be  in  that  state,  and  supposing  it  to 
be  subject  to  well-known  physical  and  chemical  laws,  we  have  come 
to  the  conclusion  that  such  must  have  been  the  process  undergone 
by  the  earth  to  reach  the  period  of  consolidation." 

Doctor. — "George,  what  do  geologists  call  this  period  in  the  life  of 
our  planet  ?" 

George. — "They  call  it  primitive  epoch,  or  azoic  age." 

Adele.— "Lock  out,  my  friend,  you  begin  to  forget  your  promise." 


42 

George. — "I  will  explain  in  a  moment.  Geologists  call  this  period 
so  because  the  eoil  which  constitutes  it  forms  the  basis  of  all  the  min- 
eral strata  of  the  globe.  In  fact,  wherever  it  has  been  possible  to 
excavate  deep  enough,  micaschist  has  always  been  found  to  rest  upon 
granite.  Granite  is  therefore  the  general  material  of  the  earth.  This 
epoch  is  called  azoic — that  is,  lifeless — in  consequence  of  the  absolute 
absence  of  all  vestige  of  either  animal  or  vegetable  life.  This  absence 
of  life  is  the  characteristic  trait  of  this  epoch  ;  so  you  see,  Miss  Adele, 
I  have  not  broken  any  promise  to  use  no  harder  words  than  is  abso- 
lutely necepsary  to  explain  the  results  of  science." 

Doctor. — "What  is  the  epoch  next  to  the  azoic  called  ?" 

George. — "Transition  epoch.  It  is  so  called  because  it  serves,  as 
it  were,  as  some  sort  of  passage  between  the  total  absence  of  life  to 
the  first  manifestations  of  vitality.  The  carboniferous  period  is  gener- 
ally referred  to  this  epoch  of  transition." 

Doctor — "Now,  George,  we  must  pause  here,  because  before  we 
give  heed  to  the  appearance  of  life  upon  the  globe  we  must  face  the 
momentous  problem  and  the  great  question  whether  life  can  spring 
up  or  be  evolved  from  matter  or  the  mineral  world  without  any  par- 
ticular intervention  of  the  Creator.  For  the  present,  to  impress  upon 
Adele's  memory  all  we  have  said  with  regard  to  the  formation  of  the 
universe  of  our  own  globe,  we  will  recapitulate  all  in  a  few  questions." 

Adele. — "I  will  put  questions  and  George  will  answer  me." 

George. — "Be  it  so." 

Adele. — "What  was  the  first  thing  God  created  ?" 

George. — "Ether,  an  imponderable  substance,  which  constitutes 
the  boundless  spaces.  Also  all  the  other  ponderable  substances  which 
were  to  form  the  universe  and  which  may  be  classed  under  the  com- 
prehensive word  of  matter." 

Adele. — "In  what  state  were  all  these  substances  ?" 

George. — "Both  imponderable  and  ponderable  substances  were  in 
a  state  of  confusion  and  chaos.  Dark  net^s  as  black  as  death  reigned 
over  this  mixture." 

Adele.— "Did  they  remain  in  that  state  ?" 

George. — "No.  Under  the  impulse  and  movement  of  the  Creator 
the  ponderable  substances  were  disengaged  from  the  imponderable. 
Centres  of  attraction  and  impulsion  were  formed  at  innumerable 
points  of  space.  They  were  the  germ  and  the  beginning  of  the  cosmic 
nebulo.'se." 

Adele. — "Did  the  darkness  continue  ?" 

George.— "No.  From  the  concentration  and  rotatory  movement 
of  the  nebulofse  heat  was  produced;  and  in  the  course  of  time  the 
increasing  elevation  in  the  temperature  produced  light,  and  the  nebu- 
loEce  cast  the  first  glimmering  of  phosphorescent  and  indistinct  light." 


43 

Doctor. — "Wait,  George,  I  wantyou  to  remark  that  there  id  nothing 
on  earth  to  prevent  us  to  understand  the  first  veraee  of  Genesis  in  ac 
cordance  with  the  ecientitic  theory  we  have  been  explaining.  'In  the 
beginuiug,'  says  Moses,  'Gud  created  heaven  arid  earth,'  that  is,  the 
imponderable  and  ponderable  substances  out  of  which  the  universe 
was  to  be  formed.  'And  the  earth  (the  sacred  writer  expresses  a  part 
fur  the  whole)  was  void  and  empty  (all  the  imponderable  and  ponder- 
able substances  are  mixed  ''p),  and  darkness  was  over  the  face  of  the 
deep.'  We  have  said  that  all  pjalter  was  in  abi'olute  darkness.  'And 
the  Spirit  of  God  moved  over  the  waters.'  God  giving  movement  to 
matter  from  which  the  centres  arij^e  which  are  the  germ  of  the  nebu- 
losse.  'And  God  said,  let  light  be  made,  and  light  was  made.'  Move- 
ment produces  heat,  heat  develops  the  phenomenon  of  light  in  the 
nebuloia3.  Hence  Science  is  no  way  in  conflict  with  Revelation,  or 
vice  versa.  And  remark  well,  both  of  you,  that  in  those  three  verses 
no  time  is  specified  wherein  the  creation  of  matter  and  the  formation 
of  the  universe,  till  the  appearance  of  light,  took  place.  Scientists  may 
take  as  many  millions  of  years  as  they  list  without  revelation  begrudg- 
ing them  one  single  instant.' 

Adele. — "What  happened  next  to  the  nebuloi-te?" 

George. — "They  are  gradually  condensed.  They  break  up  and 
give  origin  to  stars,  which  finally  become  incandescent  and  dazzling, 
and  perfectly  distinct  from  the  surrounding  darkness,  that  i*^,  the  space 
which  does  not  receive  their  light.  Our  own  earth  counts  as  one  of  those 
suns." 

Doctor. — "  'God,'  says  Genesis,  'divided  light  from  darkness.  And 
He  called  the  light  Day,  and  the  darkness  Night,  and  there  was  even- 
:ng  and  morning  one  day.'  We  are  not  obliged  by  our  religion  to  un- 
derstand that  word  day  in  any  other  sense  than  that  of  an  indefinite 
period  of  time,  as  long,  or  as  short,  as  science  may  require." 

Adele. — "What  happens  next?" 

George. — "From  the  gaseous  state  our  earth  passes  to  the  state  of 
incandescent  liquid  ;  then  its  surface  tends  to  become  solid  by  cooling. 
Around  this  crust  which  is  being  formed  there  gathers  an  immense 
and  dark  atmosphere,  saturated  with  rocky,  metallic  and  watery 
vapors.  These  vapors  progressively  and  gradually  cool  and  precipitate 
themselves  on  the  crust  of  the  earth.  Their  aquatic  vapors  solved  into 
water.  Hence  the  purification  of  the  atmosphere,  which  then  becomes 
distinct  from  the  terrestrial  spheroid,  properly  so  called,  though  aa  yet 
charged  with  thick  cloud?." 

Doctor.— "This  firmed  the  second  day  or  period  spoken  of  in  Gen- 
esis :  'And  God  said,  let  there  be  a  firmament  (an  expansion,  a  spread- 
ing) amidst  the  waters,  and  let  it  divide  waters  from  waters.'  (The  at- 
mosphere thick  with  vapors  we  havs  spoken  of.)    'And  God   made  a 


44 

firmament  and  divided  the  v/aters  v/hich  were  under  the  firmament 
^rom  those  that  were  above  the  firmament.'  And  God  called  the  firma- 
ment Heaven,  the  atmosphere  distinct  from  the  Eirth  and  purified." 

Adele.— "What  followed  after  this?" 

George. — "The  crust  of  the  earth  became  solid  all  over,  covered 
with  the  waters  which  had  fallen.  Appearance  of  the  first  islands  pro- 
duced by  the  upheaval  of  the  central  fire." 

Doctor. — "This  was  part  of  the  third  day.  'And  God  said,  let  the 
waters  that  are  under  the  Heaven  be  gathered  together  into  one  place 
and  let  the  dry  land  appear,  and  it  was  so  done.  And  God  called  the 
dry  land  Earth,  and  the  gathering  together  of  the  waters  he  called 
Seas.'  But  as  on  this  day  also  Life  is  evoked  by  the  almighty  voice  of 
<he  Creator,  we  must  transft  r  the  consideration  of  the  problems  it 
'■aiaes  to  other  entercainmenis." 


EIGHTH  ARTICLE. 

SPONTANEOUS   GENERATION   OR    EVOLUTION    IN   ITS   GENERAL   SENSE. 

Doctor. — "Now  vfe  can  approach  the  great  problem  of  life  before 
we  go  another  step  in  our  scientific  and  religious  chit-chats." 

George. — "I  never  took  hold  of  any  subject  before  with  as  much 
Interest  as  I  will  this,  and  expect  to  be  enlightened  by  your  great 
knowledge  and  experience." 

Adele. — "And  I  will  li?<ten  with  all  the  attention  lam  capable  of." 

Doctor. — "In  the  first  place,  we  will  try  to  understand  wliat  is  life, 
and  then  inquire  whether  life  can  spring  up,  or  be  evolved  from  the 
mineral  world  only,  without  any  special  interference  of  the  Creator. 
Now,  George,  please  to  tell  me,  for  I  know  you  are  acquainted  with 
all  scientific  theories,  what  are  the  essential  conditions  and  properties 
which  science  attributes  to  life?  You  see  I  want  to  give  you  an  idea 
of  life  from  scientific  observations  and  general  scientific  results,  and 
not  from  mere  philosophical  reasoning.  The  latter  will  come  in  if 
science  does  not  reason  properly  from  the  facts  which  observation  pre 
sents.     In  the  first  place,  tell  me  what  is  the  physical  basis  of  life  ?" 

George. — "It  is  what  is  called  protoplasm." 

Doctor. — "What  is  protoplasm,  according  to  its  chemical  composi- 
tion?" 

George. — "I  will  give  it  in  the  words  of  Professor  T.  H.  Huxley  :  'A 
solution  of  smelling  salts  in  water,  with  an  infinitesimal  proportion  of 
some  other  saline  matters,  contains  all  the  elementary  bodies  vv-liieh 
enter  into  the  composition  of  protoplasm.'  (Lecture  on  the  Physic:d 
Basis  of  Life.    Page  21.    New  Haven :  Charles  C.  Chatfield  &  Co.)  This 


45 

as  to  the  protoplasm  of  animals.  As  to  the  protoplasm  of  plants  I  will 
quote  Huxley  again,  No.  '23  :  'Carbon,  hydrogen,  oxygen  and  nitrogen 
are  all  lifeless  bodies.  Of  these,  carbon  and  oxygen  unite  in  certain 
jiroportions  and  under  certain  conditions  to  give  n>e  to  carbonic  acid. 
Hydrogen  and  oxygen  produce  water ;  nitrogen  and  hydrogen  give  rise 
to  ammonia.  These  new  compounds,  like  the  elementary  bodies  of 
which  they  are  composed,  are  lifeless.  But  when  they  are  brought  to- 
gether under  certain  conditions  they  give  rise  to  the  still  more  com- 
plex body,  protoplasm,  and  this  protoplasm  exhibits  the  phenomena 
of  life.'  Carbonic  acid,  therefore,  water  and  ammonia,  brought  to- 
gether under  certain  conditions,  connlitute  the  physical  basis  of  the  life 
of  the  plant  or  its  protoplasm." 

Doctor. — "Pray,  George,  can  an  animal  make  protoplasm  ?"' 

George. — "I  will  answer  with  Huxley.  An  animal  c-innot  make 
protoplasm,  bu'.  must  take  it  ready  made  from  some  other  animal  or 
some  plant,  the  animal's  highest  feat  of  constructive  chemistry  being 
to  convert  dead  protoplasm  into  that  living  matter  of  life  which  is  ap- 
propriate to  itself.  Therefore,  in  seeking  for  the  origin  of  protoplasm 
we  must  eventually  turn  to  the  vegetable  world,  p.  22  " 

Doctor, — ■  George,  can  the  vegetable  world  make  protoplasm  ?" 

George. — "X.j;  'the  plant  can  raise  the  complex  substances,  car 
bonic  acid,  water  and  ammonia,  to  the  same  stage  of  living  protoplasm, 
if  not  to  the  same  level.'  But  it  can  do  no  more.  'A  plant  supplied 
with  pure  carbon,  hydrogen,  oxygen  and  nitrogen,  phosphorus,  sul- 
phur, and  the  like,  would  as  infallibly  die  as  the  animal  in  his  bath  of 
smelling  salts,  though  it  would  be  surrounded  by  all  the  constituents 
of  protoplasm.'    Page  22."      • 

Doctor.— "Then  we  may  conclude  with  Huxley :  'All  the  forms  o( 
protoplasm  which  have  yet  been  examined  contain  the  four  elements, 
carbon,  hydrogen,  oxygen  and  nitrogen  in  very  complex  union.  To  thi.- 
complex  union,  the  nature  of  which  has  never  been  determined  with 
exactness,  the  name  of  protein  has  been  applied.'  Adele,  please  to  fix 
the  signification  of  prtiiei^.  strongly  on  your  memory,  because  it  will 
play  a  great  part  in  our  discussion."' 

Adele. — "I  will.  I  must  remember  'that  peculiar  chemical  compo- 
sition consisting  of  at  least  four  elementary  bodies,  viz.:  carbon,  hy- 
drogen, oxygen  and  nitrogen,  united  into  the  ill-defined  compound 
known  as  protein,  and  associated  with  much  water,  if  not  always  with 
sulphur,  and  phosphorus  in  minute  proportions. ' "  (Huxley,  Encyclo- 
pedia Britannica.  Art.,  Evolution.  American  edition;  v.>l.  S,  page 
654). 

Doctor. — "Then  mark  well,  both  of  you,  that  according  to  the  well 
admitted  facts  and  observations  of  science,  life  is  impossible  without 
protein.    George,  do  you  know  of  any  one  denying  this  fact  ?" 


46 

George. — "None  of  the  modern  scientists  that  I  am  aware  of  has 
ever  denied  this  absolute  physical  necessity  of  protein  to  obtain  life." 

Adele. — "Then  I  am  to  understand  that  protein  is  admitted  by  all 
modern  scientists  to  be  absolutely  necessary  as  the  lirrtt  germ  of  life." 
Doctor. — "Certainly;  now  let  us  go  on  and  investigate  the  process 
of  life.    Describe  this  process,  George." 

George  — "Well,  then,  the  germ,  as  Huxley  describes  in  the  article 
you  have  quoted  of  Eneydopwdw.  Bntannica,  passes  step  by  step  from 
an  extreme  simplicity,  or  relative  homogeneity,  of  visible  structure,  to 
a  greater  or  less  degree  of  complexity  or  heterogeneity,  and  tlie  course 
of  progressive  differentiation  is  usually  accompanied  by  growth." 

Adele.— "C-Tn  you  not  speak  more  intelligibly,  and  without  using 
such  big  words?" 

George. — "I  have  been  quoting  Huxley  ;  and,  after  all,  his  language 
is  not  so  very  hard.    He  means  that  the  germ  passes  from  an  extreme 
simplicity  of  stractuie  to  a  more  complicated  one,,  and  consequently 
from  being  of  a  certain  size  it  gradually  assumes  larger  dimensions." 
Doctor — "Tell  us,  George,  how  is  this  growth  efTected." 
George. — "By  into  susception,  as  Huxley  calls  it." 
Adele. — ''What  does  that  mean  7" 

George. — "Taking  in  other  substances.  And  it  is  to  be  rpmarkfd 
that  'the  substance  by  the  addition  of  which  the  germ  is  enlarged  is  in 
no  case  simply  absorbed,  ready  made,  from  the  not  living  world,  and 
packed  between  the  elementary  constituents  of  the  germ.  The  new 
element  is  in  great  measure  not  only  absorbed  but  assimilated,  so  that 
it  becomes  part  and  parcel  of  the  molecular  structure  of  the  living 
body,  into  which  it  enters." 

Doctor. — "George,  explain  more  clearly  how  the  germ  passes  from 
a  great  simplicity  of  structure  to  a  more  complex  one." 

George. — "In  all  animals  and  plants  above  the  lowest  the  germ  is 
an  enucleated  cell,  using  that  term  in  its  broadest  sense,  and  the  first 
step  in  the  process  of  evolution  is  the  division  of  this  cell  into  two  or 
more  portions.  The  process  of  division  is  repeated  until  the  organism, 
from  being  unicellular,  becomes  multicellular.  The  single  cell  be- 
comes a  cell  aggregate,  and  it  is  to  the  growth  and  metamorphosis  of 
the  cells  of  the  cell  aggregate  thus  produced,  that  all  the  organa  and 
tissues  owe  their  origin."    Page  654. 

Adele.— "Well,  as  I  understand  the  whole  matter,  we  know  by  ex- 
perience and  by  the  results  of  obf^ervation  what  is  the  phi^nomeuon  of 
life.  First,  my  friend  protein,  or  protoplasm,  is  necessary.  Without 
him  nothing  can  be  done  to  start  life.  Next,  he  begins  to  move  and  to 
grow,  and  this  he  cannot  do  by  himself  alone,  but  must  take  in  nutri- 
ment and  food  from  without.  This  he  uses  not  simply  as  an  addition 
to  him,  like  putting  on  a  suit  of  clothes,  but  heappropriate^t  it  to  him^ 


■17 

self,  makes  it  its  own  tlesh  and  blood  as  it  were,  and  thus  from  being 
unicellular  he  becomes  multicellular,  a  thing  made  up  of  tissues  or 
orj;>in8,  and  so  forth.     Am  I  right?" 

Doctor. — "Let  you  alone  for  recapitulating.  Now,  'in  the  investi- 
ea'ion  of  the  phenomenon  of  life,  the  first  question  which  arises  is 
whether  we  have  anj'  knowledge,  and  if  so,  what  knowledge  of  the 
origin  of  living  matter.'  George,  what  answer  does  science  give  to 
that  ?" 

George.— "I  will  answer  with  Huxley  in  his  article  in  the  Encyclo- 
paedia 8r:tannica,  entitled  Biology,  Vol.  3,  page  595.  '  la  the  case  of  all 
conspicuous  and  easily-studied  organisms,  it  has  been  obvious,  since 
the  study  of  nature  began,  that  living  beings  arise  by  generation  from 
living  beings  of  a  like  kind;  but  before  the  latter  part  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  learned  and  unlearned  alike  shared  the  conviction  that  this 
rule  was  not  of  universal  application,  and  that  multitudes  of  the  smaller 
and  more  obscure  organisms  were  produced  by  the  fermentation  of  not 
living  and  especially  of  putrefied  dead  matter  by  what  was  then  termed 
qfneratio  equivoca  vel  spontanea,  and  is  now  called  abiogencsis,  that  is, 
equivocal  vel  spontaneous  generation.' " 

Adele. — "Hold!  What  is  meant  by  that  other  queer  word  which 
they  use  now — abiogenesis,  I  believe  you  called  it  ?" 

George. — "It  is  simple  enough.  Genesis  means  generation,  and  abio 
from  not  living — jreneration  from  non  living  matter." 

Doctor. — 'Well,  according  to  all  observations  and  experiments  of 
science,  what  are  we  to  think ;  can  living  matter  spring  up  from  non- 
living matter  ?" 

George. — "I  will  give  the  words  of  Huxley  in  the  eame  article : 
'  The  fact  is  that  at  the  present  moment  there  is  not  a  shadow  of  trust- 
worthy direct  evidence  that  abiogenesis  does  take  place,  or  has  taken 
place  within  the  period  duriug  which  the  existence  of  lifeon  the  globe 
is  recorded.'  Page  596.  And  in  the  article  on  Evolution,  vol.  8,  page 
653,  the  same  scientist  says:  'In  the  immense  majority  of  both  plants 
and  animals  it  is  certain  that  the  germ  is  not  merely  a  body  in  whicb 
life  is  dormant  or  potential,  but  that  it  is  in  itself  simply  a  detached 
portion  of  the  substance  of  a  preexisting  living  body ;  and  the  evidence 
has  yet  to  be  adduced  which  will  satisfy  any  cautious  reasoner  that 
omne  vivum  ex  vivo  (every  living  being  from  a  living  being)  is  not  as 
well  established  a  law  of  the  existing  course  of  nature  as  omne  vivum  ex 
ovo  (every  living  thing  from  the  egg).  Professor  John  Tyndall,  in  two 
articles  published  in  the  Monthly  Science,  vol.  12,  gives  the  whole  his- 
tory of  the  experiments  directed  to  find  out  whether  abiogenesis  can  be 
proved  by  facts  or  not,  and  he  concludes,  page  482:  '  These  and  other 
experiments,  carried  out  with  a  severity  perfectly  obvious  to  the  inter- 
ested scientific  reader,  and  accompanied  by  a  logic  equally  severe,  re- 
/ 


48 

stored  the  conviction  that  even  in  these  lower  reaches  (air  dust  par- 
ticles of  being),  life  does  not  appear  without  the  operation  of  antece- 
dent life.'" 

Adele. — "Just  wait  an  instant,  Mr.  George.  I  heard  once  some- 
body talking  about  something  or  other  which  Professor  Huxley  had 
discovered,  and  which  was  going  to  settle  the  whole  difliculty  about 
this  matter,  some  kind  of  link,  a  go-between  inorganic  matter  and  life. 
What  is  it  they  called  it  ?  I  believe  it  was  something  like  basilius,  or 
babitius,  or  ambitious." 

Doctor. — "Stop,  Adele,  you  mean  bathybius.'' 

Adele. — "Yes,  to  be  sure,  what  about  bathybius?  Was  it  not 
something  between  life  and  not  life — something  that  might  serve  as 
an  explanation  how  life  can  came  from  non-living  matter?" 

George. — "Well,  this  thing  which  was  discovered  by  Professor 
Huxley,  and  which  was  christened  by  him  under  that  name,  was  sup- 
posed to  be  a  mineral  substance  which  could  spring  up  into  life,  the 
missing  link  between  the  miueral  and  the  vegetable  world.  Now,  Hux- 
ley himself  owns  that  the  whole  thing  is  a  fraud  and  a  deceit.  I  quote 
from  an  address  of  the  professor,  reported  in  the  Popular  Science 
Monthly,  vol.  15,  page  862:  'I  thought  my  young  friend  Bathybius 
would  turn  out  a  credit  to  me.  But,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  as  time  has 
gone  on  he  has  not  altogether  verified  the  promise  of  his  youth.  In 
the  first  place,  as  the  president  (of  the  society  he  was  addressing)  told 
you,  he  could  not  be  found  when  he  was  wanted ;  and  in  the  second 
place,  when  he  was  found  all  sorts  of  things  were  said  about  him. 
Indeed,  I  regret  to  be  obliged  to  tell  you  that  some  persons  of  severe 
minds  went  so  far  as  to  say  that  he  was  nothing  but  simply  a  gdatinoiis 
precipitate  of  slime,  which  had  carried  down  organic  matter.  If  that  is 
so,  I  am  very  sorry  for  it ;  for  whoever  else  may  have  joined  in  this 
error,  1  am,  undoubtedly,  primarily  responsible  for  it.'  So  you  see  that 
Professor  Huxley,  the  discoverer  of  this  grand  link,  fairly  and  honestly 
gives  it  up,  and  abandons  all  kind  of  paternity  and  responsibility  of 
the  poor  waif  so  hastily  christened  and  held  up  as  the  grand  proof  of 
life  springing  from  matter." 

Doctor. — "Well,  now,  let  us  draw  our  conclusions  from  our  con- 
versation; it  is  evident  that,  according  to  the  most  accurate  and  severe 
observations  and  tests  of  science,  abiogenesis  is  impossible,  or,  in  other 
words,  that  life  cannot  spring  up  spontaneously  from  the  mineial  or 
inorganic  world.  The  conclusion  of  all  this  is  that  evolution  in  its 
general  sense  is  proved  by  science  to  be  impossible.  For  evolution  in 
that  sense  assumes  life  to  have  sprung  up  from  non-living  matter.  Now, 
every  experience  and  every  observation  of  the  best  scientists,  Pasteur, 
Tyndall,  Huxley,  and  a  host  of  others,  has  put  in  the  best  and  clearest 
light  the  impossibility  of  such  a  thing.    Therefore,  evolution  in  its 


general  sense  is  out  of  the  question.  But  it  is  comical  in  the  highest  de- 
gree to  observe  how  this  fact  embarrasses  those  evolutionists  who  have 
sense  and  honesty  enough  to  admit  the  fact  of  the  utter  failure  of  any 
experiment  directed  to  prove  spontaneous  generation.  They  are  be- 
tween two  fires;  on  one  hand,  they  admit  that  no  experiment  has 
proved  abiogenesis  to  have  taken  place  in  a  single  case;  on  the  other' 
hand,  they  hang  on  evolution  as  a  mother  on  a  pet  child,  and  they 
cannot,  for  the  life  of  them,  see  how  to  get  out  of  the  difficulty." 

Getage.—'  Huxley  gets  out  of  it  in  a  very  singular  way." 

Adele — "Let  us  have  it." 

George.— "I  quote  his  words  from  the  article  on  Biology  we  have 
so  often  mentioned  (page  oOli) :  'If  the  hypothesis  of  evolution  is  true, 
living  matter  must  have  arisen  from  non  living  matter;  for,  by  the  hy- 
pothesis, the  condition  of  the  globe  was  at  one  time  such  that  living 
matter  could  not  have  existed  in  it,  life  being  entirely  incompatible 
with  the  gaeous  state.'  " 

Adele. — "Dear  me  !  what  a  comical  way  of  getting  out  of  a  scrape ! 
You  men  are  the  worst  hands  at  helping  yourselves  when  you  are 
driven  in  a  corner;  why,  a  woman  would  have  invented  a  hundred 
ways  much  better  than  the  pitiful  get  ofi'of  Mr.  Huxley.  He  says :  'If 
evolution  is  true,  life  must  have  sprung  from  no  living  matter.'  Sup- 
pose I  turn  the  tables  against  him,  and  say:  Every  experiment  has 
demonstrated  that  it  is  impossible  to  eke  life  out  of  non-living  matter; 
therefore  the  hypothesis  of  evolution  which  demands  such  impossi- 
bility cannot  be  true." 

Doctor. — "You  would  argue  very  correctly,  my  dear.  The  very  fact 
that  every  possible  experiment  has  rejected  the  hypothesis  of  any 
living  matter  springing  from  non-living  matter  ought  to  make  them 
guarded,  and  make  them  modify  the  hypothesis  of  evolution,  and  re- 
strict it. within  certain  limits.  Instead  of  that  they  start  by  supposing 
evolution  to  have  been  proven  and  demonstrated,  and  from  that  sup- 
posed-proof they  deduct  that  life  must  have  sprung  from  non-living 
maaer,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  science  has  demonstrated  the  impossi- 
bility of  such  a  thing.  'The  fact  is,'  we  may  repeat  Huxley's  words, 
•that  at  the  present  moment  there  is  not  a  shadow  of  trustworthy, 
direct  evidence  that  abiogenesis  does  take  place,  or  has  taken  place, 
witriin  the  period  during  which  the  existence  of  life  on  the  globe  is 
recorded,'  page  596." 

Adele.— "But  to  really  and  honestly  get  out  of  the  difficulty,  could 
they  not  adhere  to  the  Christian  doctrine,  and  say  that  when  the  earth 
or  any  other  planets  or  stars  which  may  contain  life  were  ready  to 
admit  of  and  to  sustain  life,  the  Almighty  caused  life  to  spring  forth  ; 
In  this  w.iy  they  could  reconcile  both  the  hypothesis  of  evolution,  in 
ii  sense  restricted  within  each  species  or  natural  kingdom,  and  also 


50 

the  fact  demonstrated  by  science  that  life  cannat  come  from  inorganic 
matter." 

Doctor, — "That  is  the  only  way  to  get  out  of  the  difiBculty — science 
demands  a  Creator  who  with  His  fiat  may  evoke  life  out  of  inanimate 
matter.  No  other  supposition  is  admissible.  But  some  of  these  gentle- 
men are  determined  to  have  no  interference  on  the  part  of  God  ;  they 
want  to  do  without  Him,  and  therefore  they  make  all  possible  effort 
to  prove,  what  cannot  be  proved,  that  life  can  spring  up  naturally  and 
spontaneously  from  inorganic  matter.  Professor  Haeckel  admits  it  iu 
so  many  words,  with  which  we  will  close  our  conversation:  'Not  wish- 
ing,' he  says,  'to  have  recourse  to  miracles  and  mysteries,  in  order  to 
account  for  the  apparition  upon  earth  of  the  first  organized  beings  we 
are  forced  to  fall  back  upon  the  generating  virtue  of  matter  itself.' 
Haeckel's  'History  of  the  Creation.'  Now,  for  miracles  and  mysteries, 
read  God  Almighty,  and  we  find  that  these  gentlemen  are  forced  to  have 
recourse  to  a  wholly  imaginary,  gratuitous  power  of  matter  to  engender 
life— a  power  which  observation  has  not  justified  iu  the  remotest  pos- 
sible way,  just  because  they  will  have  none  of  God  and  His  creative 
power.  There  is  frankness  for  you  with  a  vengeance!  And  the  won- 
der is  that  people  listen  to  such  barefaced,  impertinent,  absurd  in- 
fidelity." 


NINTH  ARTICLE. 

EVOLUTION  IN  ITS  GENERAL  SENSE — VERDICT  OF  REASON. 

Adele. — "Look  here,  gentlemen,  in  our  last  conversation  we  as- 
certained from  the  results  of  science  that  abiogenesis,  or  spontaneous 
generation,  is  not  possible,  and  we  inferred  from  that  fact  that  evolu- 
tion, understood  in  a  general  sense — that  is,  evolution  which"  makes 
the  whole  universe,  with  all  the  different  species  we  find  in  it,  to  spruig 
from  nonliving  matter,  is  scientifically  untenable.  Now,  I  would  like 
to  put  a  question :  Has  reason  nothing  to  say  in  this  matter?  Has 
logic  and  common  sense  no  opinion  to  give  on  such  hypothesis?" 

Doctor.— "Certainly  it  has;  but  I  wanted  first  to  argue  the  question 
from  the  standpoint  of  science  and  observation,  and  afterwards  take 
up  the  subject,  and  let  reason  pass  its  verdict  upon  it.  If  we  bad  done 
otherwise  they  would  say,  as  they  are  continually  saying,  right  or 
wrong,  that  we  argue  the  question  a  priori  from  preconceived  notions 
of  our  own,  which  have  no  foundation  in  real  nature,  and  then  build 
upon  such  flimsy  notions  a  whole  structure  of  reasoning  as  shaky  and 
tottering  as  the  foundation  on  which  it  rises.  But  as  we  can  now  rea- 
son upon  facts  fully  admitted  and  demonstrated  by  every  scientist  of 


51 

note,  our  structure  will  have  a  solid  foundation.  From  the  idea  of 
life  then,  as  exhibited  by  science,  I  want  to  demonstrate  that  evolution 
in  its  general  sense  is  an  utter  impossibility  and  absurdity.  I  may 
define  life  to  be  a  spontaneous,  uninterrupted  movement.  Mark  the 
detiuition:  first  of  all,  life  is  a  movement  to  mark  the  first  difference 
which  flashes  before  our  eyes  between  living  beings  and  inorganic 
beings.  Secondly,  we  have  called  it  a  epontaneous,  or  internal  move- 
ment, to  mark  the  second  difference  existing  between  living  and  non- 
living beings.  The  inorganic  world  is  subject  to  movement;  if  I 
loosen  the  hold  I  have  of  a  book  it  will  fall  to  the  ground;  the  earth 
moves,  the  air  stirs,  the  wind  blowi^,  the  light  and  sound  travel,  the 
locomotive  dashes  on.  In  fact,  all  tho  difierent  forces  of  nature  can 
be  reduced  to  one  single  force,  and  that  is  movement.  But,  mark  well, 
when  the  inorganic  body  moves  the  impulsion  comes  to  it  from  with- 
out, and  never  from  within.  It  is  the  necessary  consequence  of  the  law 
of  inertia  to  which  the  mineral  world  is  essentially  subject;  of  itself 
and  of  its  own  nature,  as  it  is  admitted  by  all  natural  philosophers,  it; 
is  indifferent  to  movement  or  to  quiet;  hence,  once  started  upon  mov- 
ing, it  would  move  forever,  if  it  did  not  encounter  on  its  way  obstacles 
which  counteract  and  exhaust  the  impulsion.  And  what  would  stop 
it  if  no  external  obstacle  were  supposed  ?  Certainly  no  internal  reason 
emanating  from  its  essence,  which  is  absolutely  indifferent  to  quiet  or 
to  movement.  Therefore  if  inorganic  bodies  move,  their  movement 
comes  to  them  from  an  external  agent,  and  never  from  any  internal 
principle  of  action;  i' comes  from  without,  and  never  from  within; 
hence  we  have  defined  life  to  be  a  spontaneous,  or  internal  movement." 

Adele.— "But  what  do  you  mean  by  the  word  uninterrupted?" 

Docto.. — 'I  don't  take  that  word  uninterrupted  as  if  organic  beings 
were  not  subject  to  dissolution  or  death.  For  we  know  that  all  or- 
^unized  beings  in  this  world  are  born,  grow,  and  die.  At  least,  we  may 
take  this  much  for  granted  at  present,  without  entering  now  into  the 
question  whether  any  living  being  really  perish  forever.  By  that  word 
uninterrupted,  therefore,  I  want  to  expresd  the  idea  that  between  the 
commencement  of  life  in  all  organic  beings,  and  its  dissolution  by 
death,  that  spontaneous  internal  movement  is  never  broken,  but  goes 
on  affecting  and  modifying  the  being  without  ever  ceasing.  Therefore 
we  may  define  life  in  the  abstract  to  be  spontaneous,  uninterrupted 
movement." 

Adele. — "But  is  this  definition  a  product  of  your  imagination,  a 
figment  of  your  fancy,  an  abstruse  ideal  notion  which  has  no  founda- 
tion in  fact  and  in  reality?' 

Doctor.— "Not  at  all.  I  have  drawn  it  from  the  most  universally 
admitted  facts  of  observation  and  of  experimental  science.  I  have  built 
it  upon  the  generally  acknowledged  essential  difference  between  living 


52 

beings  and  non-living  matter.  This  latter  does  not  move;  when  it  does 
move,  the  impulsion  to  movement  comes  to  it  from  without,  never 
from  within ;  whilst  moving  it  is  not  interiorly  affected  by  the  move- 
ment or  by  any  obstacle  to  its  continuation  which  it  may  find  in  the 
way — no  alteration  having  taken  place  in  it  either  when  impelled  to 
move  or  when  forced  to  stop ;  whereas,  in  a  living  being  the  move- 
ment is  from  within,  and  the  internal  movement  affects  and  trans- 
forms the  being,  and  this  movement  is  never  interrupted  until  death 
comes  to  the  organism  either  from  internal  causes  or  from  violent  causes 
from  without." 

George. — "Why,  Professor  Huxley  gives  the  distinctive  marks  of 
living  beings  from  non- living  in  the  same  manner  as  you  have  given 
them,  and  the  definition  of  life  almost  ia  the  same  words.  I  will  quote 
the  passage :  'Consider  how  differently  this  living  particle  ( Eng  ena, 
a  living  germ)  is  from  the  dead  atoms  with  whi:h  the  physicist  and 
chemist  have  to  do.  The  particle  of  gold  falls  to  the  bottom  and  lests 
— the  particle  of  dead  protein  decomposes  and  disappears — it  also 
rests;  but  the  living  protein  mass  neither  tends  to  exhaustion  of  its 
forces  nor  to  any  permanency  of  form,  but  is  essentially  distinguished 
as  a  disturber  of  equilibrium,  so  far  as  force  is  concerned,  as  under- 
going continual  metamorphosis  and  change  in  point  of  form.  Ten- 
dency to  equilibrium  of  force  and  to  permanency  of  form  are  the 
characters  of  that  portion  of  the  universe  which  does  not  live  in  the 
domain  of  the  chemist  and  physicist.  Tendency  to  distinct  exisdng 
equilibrium  to  take  on  forms  which  succeed  one  another  iu  definite 
cycles  is  the  character  of  the  living  world.  What  is  the  cause  of  this 
wonderful  difference  between  tHe  dead  particle  and  the  living  particle 
of  matter,  appearing  in  other  respects  identical — that  difference  to 
which  we  give  the  name  of  life  ?  I  for  one  cannot  tell  you.  It  may  be 
that,  by  and  by,  philosophers  will  discover  some  higher  laws  of  which 
the  parts  of  life  are  particular  cases — very  possibly  they  will  find  out 
some  bond  between  physic:)  chemical  phenomena  on  the  one  hand 
and  vital  phenomena  on  the  other.  At  present,  however,  we  assuredly 
know  of  none;  andl  think  we  shall  exercise  a  wise  humility  in  con- 
fessing that  for  us  at  least  this  successive  assumption  of  difle rent  states 
(external  conditions  remaining  the  same),  this  spontaneity  of  action — it 
I  may  use  a  term  which  implies  more  than  I  would  be  answerable  for 
— which  constitutes  so  vast  and  plain  a  practical  distinction  between 
living  bodies  and  those  which  do  not  live,  is  an  ultimate  fact,  indi- 
cating as  such  the  existence  of  broad  line  of  demarcation  between  the 
subject  matter  of  biological  and  that  of  all  other  sciences.'  Huxley's 
Lay  Sermons.    Appleton  &  Co.,  1876.    Page  70.' 

Doctor. — "Nothing  could  be  sdid  better,  or  in  more  choice  words. 
We  will  adopt,  then,  the  definition  of  life  given  by  Huxley,  which 


53 

consists  in  spi^ntanctu  i/  aciiun.  Now,  George,  please  to  give  me  the 
idea  of  the  principal  stages,  or,  we  might  call  them,  functions  of  life." 

George.— "I  will  reply  with  the  same  scientist :  'Whatever  forma  the 
living  being  may  take  on,  whether  simple  or  complex,  production,  growth 
and  reproduction  are  the  phenomena  which  distinguish  it  from  that 
which  does  not  live.'" 

Adele. — "So  that  the  principal  functions  or  stages  of  life  are  three: 
the  first  is  production.     What  is  meant  by  that,  uncle?" 

Doctor. — "Why,  is  meant  that  iirst  function  by  which  the  living 
germ  or  protein  is  developed  into  an  individual  being  of  its  kind.  For 
instance,  we  will  take  the  germ  of  an  oak  ;  when  its  protein  has  been 
evolved  into  a  tree  called  oak,  no  matter  hoAV  small  it  may  as  yet  ap- 
pear, the  first  function  of  life  has  been  exercised  and  an  oak  has  been 
produced.  The  oak  goes  on  increasing  until  it  reaches  the  full  per- 
fection which  oaks  generally  attain,  and  we  have  the  second  function 
of  life,  gnndh.  Finally,  something  is  separated  from  the  oak,  an  acorn 
which  contains  the  protein  of  a  new  oak;  the  third  condition  or 
function,  life,  is  verified  reproduction  or  generation.  Now,  Adele,  please 
to  tell  me,  for  we  have  alluded  to  this  before,  are  these  three  principal 
functions  ©f  life  possible  simply  from  the  fact  that  the  living  germ  is 
possessed  of  spontaneity  of  action  ?" 

Adele. — "Certainly  not.  It  must  draw  from  without  whatever  it 
needs  for  its  production,  growth,  and  reproduction  ;  and  this  it  does, 
not  by  simply  adding  external  objects  to  itself,  as  one  would  put  on  a 
covering,  or  as  molecules  of  the  mineral  kind  are  added  to  other  min- 
erals, but  changing  the  forms  of  these  objects,  appropriating  them  to 
itself,  and  transform  them  into  its^elf." 

Doctor  —"We  may  conclude,  then,  by  saying  life,  to  be  that  spon- 
taneity of  action  in  a  germ  by  which  it  becomes  an  individual  of  its 
kind,  grows  to  a  certain  definite  growth,  and  reproduces  itself.  Now, 
what  we  want  to  know  is  if  that  spontaneity  of  action  can  originate  in 
dead  matter — or,  in  other  words,  if  a  piece  of  dead  matter,  immovable, 
inert,  can  of  itself,  and  without  supposing  any  other  element  in  it  than 
is  to  be  found  in  an  individual  being  of  the  mineral  kingdom,  spring 
into  action  ?    Is  this  consistent  with  reason  ?    Is  it  possible  ?" 

Adele. — "I  think  not." 

Doctor. — "And  why  ?" 

George. — "I  am  anxious  to  see  how  ladies  can  philosophize.  Please 
tell  us  why  ?" 

Adele. — "Why,  the  thing  appears  to  mo  very  simple.  You  want 
life — that  is,  spontaneous  action — to  spring  up  from  dead  matter,  and 
from  dead  matter  alone;  that  is,  without  the  interference  of  any  one, 
or  without  supposing  any  other  element  in  matter,  except  what  is 
found  in  a  mineral  pure  and  simple.      That  is  the  supposition,  is  it 


54 

not  ?  Well,  I  say  the  thing  ia  impossible,  because  no  being  can  give 
or  exhibit  what  it  has  not  got;  matter  is  dead,  immovable  weigat; 
therefore  it  cannot  give  or  exhibit  movement  or  action.  If  action  could 
be  supposed  to  spring  from  dead,  inert  matter,  it  could  only  be  because 
we  could  imagine  matter,  though  immovable  and  inert,  to  be  endowed 
with  a  power,  a  potentiality  to  action.  But  even  in  such  supposition 
the  thing  is  impossible,,  because  matter  could  by  no  manner  of  means 
actualize  that  power  by  itself  dormant  and  latent  in  itself.  How  could 
it  issue  from  the  dormant  s'ate  into  that  of  movementand  action  ?  By 
the  interference  of  a  strange  agent?  No.  By  itself?  But  don't  you 
see  that  to  do  that  it  would  be  already  in  movement  and  action  ? 
Therefore,  it  is  evident  that  matter  could  never  of  itself  pass  from  the 
state  of  potentials  into  that  of  movement;  and  if  life  is  spontaneous 
act  or  movement,  no  dead  matter  can  ever  of  itself  spring  into  or  ex- 
hibit life." 

George.— "I  did  not  think   you  could  reason  so  closely  and  so 
stringently,  Miss  Adele." 

Adele. — "The  point  is,  am  I  right?" 

Doctor.— "You  aie  perfectly  light,  and  there  is  no  escaping  the 
force  of  your  argument.     Life  ia  internal  action  or  movement,  which 
effects  certain  definite  results,  as  for  instance  the  production  of  an 
incipient  individual  of  a  certain  species,  the  prowth  of  that  individual 
up  to  a  defined  stage,  and  the  power  of  reproduction.    On  the  other 
hand,  before  the  appearance  of  life,  the  earth  presented  nothing  but 
dead,  immovable,  inert  matter.  Now,  the  question  is,  how  did  life— that 
is  internal  spontaneous  action  and  movement — appear?      How  did 
that  dead,  inert,  inanimate  matter  become  alive  and  glowing  with  ac- 
tion and  movement?    How  was  matter,  till  then  absolutely  devoid  of 
action  and  movement,  and  consisting  merely  of  an  aggregate  of  atoms 
and  mo'le'jules  holding  together  in  iuxtaposition  to  each  other  simply 
by  the  law  of  attraction  and  cohesion,  which  does  not  at  all  exist  or 
originate  in  the  molecules  themselves,  but  acts  from  without — how 
did  it  come  all  at  once  to  be  invested  by  a  principle  which  takes  hold 
of  those  molecules,  dissolves  them,  as  it  were,  and,  grasping  and  ap- 
propriating from  the  surrounding  earth  and  air  whatever  it  stands  in 
need  of  for  its  special  purpose,  initiates  a  cell,  and  from  that  nucleus 
cell  start  other  cells  until  it  forms  a  regular  organis^m  of  aspfcialkind, 
and  then,  continuing  the  appropriation  and  assimilation,  exhibit  an 
individual  of  its  kind  in  its  full  growth  and  capable  of  reproducing 
itself?    That  living  principle  which  evidently  did  not  appear  in  dead, 
inanimate   matter    before,    must   ha^ve    come    there    from    without, 
and  without  the  aid  of  external  agent,  since  to  actunlizf^  its  own 
power,  to  bring  itself  from  potentiality  into  real  act,  matter  would  have 
to  be  already  in  action.    Let  me  illustrate  :    We  will  suppose  a  nebble ; 


55 

there  it  lies  on  the  sand  by  the  seashore,  immovable,  inert,  dead.  The 
waves  pass  over  it  playfully  and  enress  it,  but  it  remains  unmoved  and 
insensible  to  those  caresses.  Now,  you  would  want  that  pebble  to 
spring  up  into  a  rose  tree.  It  is  evident  that  it  is  not  now  a  rose  tree. 
To  become  that  beiiutiful  plant  it  would  have  to  give  itself  that  spon- 
taneity of  action  by  means  of  which  it  would  select  that  aliment  from 
the  surrounding  surf  and  air,  and  assimiLite  them  to  itself,  and  thus 
acquire  the  nature  and  qualities  of  an  incipient  rose  tree,  and  continue 
the  process  until  it  had  acquired  the  full  growth  of  a  rose  tree,  and 
then  be  able  to  Itt  fall  buds  and  seeds  to  reproduce  itself.  It  is  evi- 
dent that  that  immovable,  inert  pebble  shows  not  the  least  sign  or  in- 
clination to  such  action  or  movement.  You  say  it  u  by  an  act  of  the 
Creator,  or  it  must  have  lain  dormant  in  the  inanimate  matter.  It 
could  not  have  lain  dormant  in  itianimate  matter  and  rise  up  by  itself, 
because  it  would  have  to  be  active  already  before  it  had  been  evoked 
from  the  d'  riiiant  state.  Therefore  the  living  principle  in  matter,  the 
cause  of  life  in  the  living  world,  must  either  have  been  created  by  God 
Almighty  from  nothing  and  placed  in  matter,  or  it  must  have  been 
evoked  from  matter  by  a  special  act  of  the  same  Creator.  In  either 
case,  we  require  a  special  act  of  the  Creator  to  account  for  the  appear- 
ance of  life  upou  the  earth,  and  evolution,  in  a  universal  sense,  is 
proven  by  reason  to  be  untenable  and  false." 

George. — "I  see  by  your  last  words  that  to  account  for  life  it  is  not 
necessary  to  suppose  a  new  creation  from  nothiug.  That  principle, 
which  united  to  inanimate  matter  as  the  soul  to  the  body,  need  not  be 
created  anew.  It  may  be  evoked,  evolved,  drawn  from  the  capabilities 
of  matter  itself  by  a  special  act  of  God,  Vv'hich  special  act  is  necessary, 
because  no  being  can  pass  from  the  state  of  rest  and  immovability 
into  action  and  movement  except  by  the  impulse  of  an  external 
agent." 

Doctor. — "We  may  conclude  it  is  impossible  to  account  for  the  ap- 
pearance of  life  in  the  universe  without  a  special  interference  of  the 
Creator,  and  this  conclusion,  both  of  true  science  and  right  reason,  is 
80  true  that  those  would  be  scientists,  who  will  have  none  of  God,  not 
being  able  to  tatisfaotorily  account  for  the  appearance  of  life,  are  obliged 
to  assume  life  as  a  necessary  postuiatum  of  science.  I  will  quote  a  few 
testimonies.-  'The  existence  of  a  spontaneous  generation,'  says  Clus,  'if 
we  could  succeed  to  demonstrate  it,  would  prove  of  great  service  in 
our  efTorts  of  physico  chemical  explanations.  It  even  appears  to  be  a 
necessary  postulate  to  -explain  scientifically  the  first  apparitions  of 
organisms.'  (Treatise  on  Zoology,  page  2.)  'He  who  does  not  believe  in 
spontaneous  generation,  or  rather  the  secular  evolution  of  organic 
matter  from  inorganic  matter,  admits  the  miracle.  It  is  (spontaneous 
generation)  a  necessary  hypothesis  which  none  can  shake,  either  by  d 


56 

priori  arguments  or  by  experiments  of  the  laboratory.'  Soury  Le.preuves 
des  transformism.     What  are  you  laughing  at,  Adele  ?" 

Adele. — "At  your  scientists,  who  make  it  their  boast  that  their 
science  is  founded  on  facts  and  observation,  and  now  assuming  a  hypo- 
thesis in  direct  contradiction  to  facta  and  obserTations.  You  men  have 
the  very  greatest  capacity  of  swallowing." 

Doctor. — "Enough  of  the  subject." 


TENTH  ARTICLE. 

WERE  ALL  LIVING  BEINGS  EVOLVED  FROM  THE  LOWEST  FORM  OF  LIFE,  OR 
WAS  EACH  SPECIESOFTHEVEGETABLE  AND  ANIMAL  WORLD  EFFECTED 
BY  A  SPECIAL  ACT  OF  THE  CREATOR  ? — TRANSFORMISM  AND  DARWIN- 
ISM—WHAT  IS  A  SPECIES?— CAN  A  SPECIES  BE  DISTINGUISHABLE 
FROM  ANOTHER  ? 

Doctor. — "Having  demonstrated  in  our  two  last  conversations  that 
life  cannot  spring  from  dead  matter,  but  that  it  must  have  been 
evoked  by  the  Creator — as  Darwin  freely  admits  in  these  wordd  :  'There 
is  a  grandeur  in  this  view  of  life,  having  been  originally  breathed  by 
the  Creator  into  a  few  forms  or  into  one' — we  may  pass  to  the  discussion 
of  that  great  problem,  were  all  living  things  evolved  from  one  or 
from  a  few  forms  of  life,  or  was  each  species  of  the  vegetable  and 
animal  kingdom  efi'ected  by  a  special  act  of  the  Creator  ?" 

George. — "As  I  understood  you.  Doctor,  in  one  of  our  conversa- 
tions, this  question  is  an  open  one." 

Adele. — "What  do  you  mean  by  an  open  question  ?" 

George. — "I  mean  that  we  can  hold  either  the  one  or  other  of  the 
two  propositions  without  meeting  any  opposition  from  revelation." 

Adele. — "Do  you  mean  to  eay  that  I  can  maintain  the  opinion  that 
all  living  beings  were  evolved  from  one  of  the  lowest  forms  of  life 
without  contradicting  any  truth  of  our  religion  ?" 

Doctor. — "George  is  right,  Adele,  if  we  exclude  man  from  the  list 
of  living  beings.  With  that  exception  we  can  hold,  as  we  intimated 
in  one  of  our  conversations,  we  can  maintain  either  the  one  or  the 
other  opinion." 

Adele. — "Then  why  do  we  discuss  the  question  ?" 

Doctor. — "Just  to  see  what  real  science  has  to  say  about  it.  You 
remember,  Adele,  what  is  meant  by  evolution,  restricted  in  the  sense 
in  which  we  examine  it  now  ?" 

Adele. — "Certainly.  Evolution,  as  admitted  by  the  difierent 
scientists  of  modern  times,  is  that  system  which  maintains  that  all 


57 

living  beings,  from  the  lowest  to  the  Ijigliest,  iiuve  been  evolved  from 
one  or  two  of  the  lowest  forma  of  life." 

Doctor. — '^Very  good.  Of  course  tliere  are  different  ways  of  ex- 
plaining the  system,  but  all  those  who  admit  the  creation  of  the  first 
form  or  forms  of  life  agree  in  that  general  idea.  We  will  pass  over  the 
accidental  diflVrences  in  ihe  systems  of  the  various  evolutionists  and 
transform ists,  and  examine  the  idea  common  to  them  all — that  all 
living  beings,  vegetable  as  well  as  animal,  were  evolved,  developed, 
from  one  or  few  of  the  lowest  forms  of  life.  George,  please  to  tell  us 
what  are  the  main  arguments  or  proofs  upon  which  the  system  is  Kup- 
posed  to  rest  ?" 

George. — ''Why,  Doctor,  you  know  evolutionists  claim  that  the 
whole  bevy  of  natural  sciences  is  in  favor  of  this.  First  they  allege 
general  experience  and  observation  of  the  mutability  and  changeable- 
ness  of  natural  species;  then  they  invoke  in  their  favor  geography, 
paleontology,  geology,  embriology,  comparative  anatomy,  pathology, 
and  a  host  of  other  sciences." 

Adele. — "I  hope  you  do  not  exaggerate,  Mr.  George." 

Doctor. — "He  is  right,  Adele.  Evolutionists  claim  at  least  half 
a  dozen  sciences  in  support  of  their  pet  system.  I  am  afraid  we  shall 
have  to  devote  one  or  two  conversations  on  each  one  to  do  jus- 
tice to  the  subject.  The  first  thing  to  be  investigated  is  whether 
observation  and  experience  bear  out  the  assertion  of  evolutionists  with 
regard  to  the  mutability  and  transformation  of  natural  species." 

Adele. — "Excuse  me,  gentlemen  ;  it  seems  to  me  you  are  commit- 
ting a  slight  oversight ;  you  are  talking  of  forms  and  species  without 
defining  what  you  mean  by  those  words.  Would  it  be  presuming  too 
much  on  your  condescension  if  I  ask  you  to  throw  some  light  on 
those  expressions  ?' 

Doctor. — "We  are  coming  to  it,  Adele.  Suppose  I  enter  a  botanic 
garden;  a  beautiful  sight  stretches  out  before  me — a  great  multitude 
of  plants  and  flowers  of  every  size,  of  every  shape,  of  every  color.  At 
first  I  distinguish  nothing  in  particular,  but  by  degrees  I  observe  that 
the  garden  is  divided  into  so  many  beds,  each  filled  with  a  number  of 
plants,  which  appear  to  be  of  similar  structure,  of  similar  form  and 
shape,  though  each  plant  is  more  or  lees  distinguished  from  the 
others  in  some  peculiarity  of  size,  of  shape,  of  tints,  which,  without  at 
all  destroying  the  general  resemblance,  mark  the  individuality  of  each. 
Moreover  I  observe  that  each  bed  of  plants  is  totally  difiTerent  from 
the  adjacent  beds.  Am  I  right  in  inferring  that  each  bed  contains  a 
special  kind  of  plants  ?" 

Adele — "Certainly." 

Doctor. — "Well.,  then,  we  begin  to  surmise  what  is  meant  by  a 
species.    When  I  see  a  number  of  plants,  each  exhibiting  the  same 


58 

general  organs  and  structure,  the  same  form  and  shape,  I  naturally 
infer  that  they  must  have  a  common  type,  as  they  appear  to  be  fash- 
ioned after  the  same  design.     George,  what  would  ITuxley  call  it?" 

George. —  'He  would  call  it  a  morphological  epecies." 

Adele. — "Pray,  explain." 

George. — "Here  are  Huxley's  words  :  '  When  we  call  a  group  of  ani- 
mals, or  of  plants,  a  species,  we  may  imply  thereby  either  that  all  these 
animals  and  plants  have  some  common  peculiarity  of  form  or  struc- 
ture, or  we  may  mean  that  they  possess  some  common  functional 
character.  That  part  of  biological  science  (science  of  life)  which  deals 
with  form  and  structure,  is  called  morphokgy.'" 

Doctor. — "From  the  Greek  words  morphe,  form,  and  logos,  dis- 
course." 

George.— "That  which  concerns  itself  with  function,  physiology  " 

Adele. — "Well,  let  us  have  the  definition  of  species  accord iug  to 
form  and  structure  of  animals  and  plants." 

George. — "'A  species  is  nothing  more  thau  a  kind  of  animal  or 
plant  distinctly  definable  from  all  others  by  certain  constant  mor- 
phological peculiarities.'  (Lay  Sermons,  page  258.)  Thus,  for  in- 
stance, horses  form  a  species,  because  the  group  of  animals  to  which 
that  name  is  applied  is  distinguished  from  all  others  in  the  world  by 
exhibiting  all  those  combined  characters  of  structure  and  form  which 
everybody  knows." 

Adele.— "I  understand  a  species  iu  the  morphological  sense. 
Now,  I  want  to  have  a  clear  idea  of  a  species  according  to  those  actions 
or  functions  which  it  exercises." 

Doctor. — "A  species,  considered  in  relation  to  the  acts  or  functions 
it  exercises,  is  a  group  of  animals  or  of  plants,  which  are  able  to  gen- 
erate others  like  themselves,  and  to  transmit  to  their  offspring  the  same 
power  of  reproduction." 

George.—"  'In  all  living  beings,'  says  Huxley,  'the  primitive 
impulse  is  tending  .  .  .  seems  to  be  to  mould  the  offspring  into  the 
likeness  of  the  parent.  It  is  the  first  great  law  of  reproduction  that 
the  offspring  tends  to  resemble  its  parent  or  parents  more  closely  than 
anything  else.' "    (Page  262.) 

Doctor.— "Then  by  combining  both  ideas  together  we  may  give  a 
full  definition  of  a  species  by  saying  that  it  is  a  group  of  animals  or  of 
plants  presenting  the  same  structure  and  form,  and  capable  of  pro- 
ducing offspring  like  themselves  and  with  the  same  power  of  repro- 
duction." 

Adele.— "But,  uncle,  can  there  be  no  variety  among  plants  or  ani- 
mals belonging  to  the  same  species  ?" 

Doctor. — "Certainly  a  number  of  external  circumstances,  principal 
among  which  we  enumerate  change  of  climate,  nourishment,  artificial 


50 

training,  and  others,  may  produce  certain  varieties  in  the  structure 
and  form  of  individuals  of  the  species,  witliout  altering  at  all  their 
essential  qualities.  These  varieties  may  influence  the  function  of  re- 
production and  appear  in  the  oflspring.  Now,  two  things  niay  occur: 
after  one  or  a  few  generations  the  variety  may  disappear ;  or  it  may 
become  fixed  and  permanent  in  the  course  of  generations ;  so  that 
we  may  have  a  number  of  individuals  exhibiting  the  essential  require- 
ments of  the  species,  but  always  wiih  a  certain  special  variety  of  their 
own.  In  the  latter  case  we  have  what  is  called  a  Race,  which  may  be 
defined,  iu  the  words  of  Quatrefaces:  'A  number  of  individuals  resem- 
bling each  other  belonging  1o  one  species,  having  received  and  trans- 
mitting, by  means  of  generation,  the  characters  of  a  primitive  variety.'  " 
("The  Human  Species,"  page  39:  Appleton,  ISSl.) 

Adele.— "Who  is  Quatrefaces,  uncle  ?"' 
■  Doctor. — "One  of  the  greatest  of  modern  scientists,  Professor  of 
Anthropology  in  the  Museum  of  Natural  History  of  Paris." 

Georgj;. — "Also  a  member  of  the  Academy  of  Sciences  and  author 
of  many  works  iu  natural  history." 

Doctor. — '  Now  we  mu^t  approach  that  great  question  which  has 
euch  important  bearing  on  the  subject  which  we  are  discussing — 
that  is  to  say  :  Is  there  a  certain  unerring,  unmistakable  criterion  or 
sign  by  which  we  may  tell  one  species  from  another,  and  where  is  it 
to  be  found ?    Do  you  understand,  Adele ?' 

Adele. — "I  think  I  do.  We  suppose,  mankind  supposes,  that 
there  are  a  multitude  of  species  in  the  vegetable  and  animal  world. 
Now  you  want  to  find  out  whether  there  is  such  a  thing  as  a  mark  or 
criterion  by  which,  without  fear  of  mistake,  we  can  distinguish  one 
species  from  another." 

Djctor. — "Right;  now,  George,  what  is  agreed  upon  among  scien- 
tiss  with  regard  to  the  matter  in  hand  ?" 

George. — 'That  if  tliere  be  such  sign,  it  is  not  t3  be  found  in  the 
morphological  species — that  is,  species  with  regard  to  its  structure  and 
form.  'As  it  is  admitted  on  all  sides,'  says  Huxley,  'that  races  occur 
in  nature,  how  are  we  to  know  whether  any  apparently  distinct  ani- 
mals are  really  of  different  physiological  species  or  not,  seeing  that  the 
amount  of  morphological  difference  is  no  safe  guide  ?'" 

Adele. — "Then,  if  there  is  any  such  reliable  test  or  criterion,  we 
must  seek  for  it  iu  physiology — that  is,  in  the  function  of  the  plant 
and  the  animal.    And  is  there  such  a  thing,Mr.  George?" 

George. — "I  answer  with  the  same  Huxley:  'The  usual  answer  of 
physiologists  is  in  the  affirmative.  It  is  said  that  euch  a  test  is  to  be 
found  in  the  phenomena  of  hybridization  in  the  results  of  crossing 
races  as  compared  with  the  results  of  crossing  species.'    Page  272." 

Adele. — "What  do  you  mean  by  that  long  word ?' 


60 

George. — "I  mean  the  offspring  of  parents,  one  of  whom  belongs 
either  to  a  different  species  from  the  other,  or  to  a  different  race.  'So 
far  as  the  evidence  goes,'  continues  Huxley,  'individuals  of  what  are 
certainly  known  to  be  mere  races,  however  distinct  they  may  appear 
to  be,  not  only  breed  freely  together,  but  the  offt^priug  of  such  crossed 
races  are  perfectly  fertile  with  one  another.  Thus  the  spaniel  and  the 
greyhound,  the  dray-horse  and  the  Arab,  the  pouter  and  the  tumbler 
breed  together  with  perfect  freedom,  and  their  mongrels,  if  matched 
with  other  mongrels  of  the  same  kind,  are  equally  fertile.  On  the 
other  hand,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  individuals  of  many  natural  . 
species  are  either  absolutely  infertile  if  crossed  with  individuals  of 
other  species,  or  if  they  give  rise  to  hybrid  offspring,  the  hybrids  so 
produced  are  infertile  when  paired  together.  The  horse  and  the  ass, 
for  instance,  if  crossed,  give  rise  to  the  mule,  and  there  is  no  certain 
evidence  of  ofispring  ever  having  been  produced  by  a  mule  and  fernale 
mule.' " 

Doctor. — "Now  mark  the  conclusion  which  follows  from  this 
common  universal  experience.  'Here,  then,'  says  the  physiologist,  'we 
have  a  means  of  distinguishing  any  two  true  species  from  any  two 
varieties.  If  a  male  and  a  female,  selected  from  each  group,  produce 
offspring,  and  that  offspring  is  fertile  with  others  produced  in  the 
same  way,  the  groups  are  races,  not  species.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  no 
result  ensues,  or  if  the  offspring  are  infertile  with  others  produced  in 
the  same  way,  they  are  true  physiological  species'  (page  273).  We  may 
conclude,  then,  that  the  generality  of  scientists,  evolutionists  included, 
admit  that  there  is  such  a  thing  as  an  infallible  criterion  to  distinguish 
one  species  from  another,  and  that  is  infertility  or  barrenness.  If  two 
individuals  of  two  different  groups  brought  together  produce  no  off- 
spring, or  a  barren  one,  they  belong  to  two  different  species.  If  two 
individuals  of  two  different  groups  when  brought  together  produce 
ofispring,  and  an  offspring  with  the  same  power  of  reproduction,  they 
belong  to  two  different  races,  but  to  the  same  species." 

George. — "But,  Doctor,  you  must  surely  know  that  Huxley  does 
not  admit  your  criterion  in  those  words.  'The  test  would  be  an  admira- 
ble one  if,  in  the  first  place,  it  were  always  practicable  to  apply  it;  and 
if,  in  the  second,  it  always  yielded  results  Susceptible  of  a  definite 
interpretation.' " 

Doctor. — "I  was  perfectly  aware  of  those  words  of  Huxley,  hut  count 
them  as  absolutely  worthless,  and  so  would  Huxley  himself  if  he  were 
not  determined,  at  all  hazards,  to  pave  the  way  for  his  pet  theory  of 
evolution  by  abolishing  all  distinction  of  species.  But  let  us  examine 
them.    What  is  the  first  reason  ?" 

George. — "  'The  test  is  not  always  practicable.  The  constitution  of 
some  wild  animals  is  so  altered  by  confinement  that  they  will  not  breed, 


61 

even  with  their  own  female?,  so  that  the  negative  results  obtained  from 
crosses  are  of  no  value ;  and  the  antipathy  of  wild  animals  of  different 
species  is  ordinarily  so  great,  that  it  is  hopeless  to  look  for  such  unions 
in  nature'— p:ige  273." 

Doctor. — "The  reason  then  of  Huxley  is  that  the  tast  is  not 
practicable,  because,  forsooth,  it  cannot  he  applied  in  all  and  every 
case.  Such  a  reason  proves  nothing  at  all,  for  the  question  is  not 
whether  we  can  test  the  criterion  in  every  possible  case,  for  that  is  not 
at  all  necessary,  and  if  it  were  it  would  render  all  natural  science 
absolutely  impossible;  but  whether,  in  all  the  cases  in  which  the  test 
has  been  applied,  the  result  has  ever  been  diCerentfrom  one  expected 
by  the  test;  and  I  eay — all  scientists  say— that  in  the  thousand  and 
tens  of  thousands  and  millions  of  cases  where  the  test  has  been  applied, 
in  a}\  time  and  place  the  criterion  has  never  failed." 

Adele. — "But,  uncle,  what  did  you  mean  by  saying  that  if  it  were 
necessary  to  apply  the  test  to  all  and  every  case  it  would  render  all 
natural  science  impossible?" 

Doctor. — "You  will  understand  it,  Adele,  if  you  will  remark  that 
all  natural  sciences  are  founded  on  observation  and  experience,  from 
which  general  laws  are  deduced.  Let  us  take  physics,  for  instance.  It 
is  that  science  which  observes  the  external  phenomena  of  bodies  and 
endeavors  to  investigate  the  causes  which  produce  them  and  the  laws 
which  govern  them.  By  observing,  for  instanc.e,  in  sufficient  number 
of  cases,  that  the  molecules  of  a  body  attract  each  other,  the  natural 
philosopher  has  deduced  the  law  of  molecular  attraction.  By  observ- 
ing by  repeated  experiments  in  a  sufficient  number  of  cases  that  all 
the  known  causes  of  external  phenomena,  such  as  movement,  light, 
heat,  electricity,  can  be  reduced  to  movement,  the  natural  philosopher 
has  concluded  the  law  of  the  correlition  of  forces.  Now,  of  course 
you  understand  th^t  what  makes  a  science  is  not  the  knowledge  of  a 
number  of  disconnected  facts,  but  the  knowledge  of  the  principles  in 
which  puch  facts  originate  and  the  laws  which  govern  them.  But  if 
the  natural  philosopher  were  to  wait  before  deducting  a  law  govern- 
ing a  phenomenon  from  sufficient  number  of  observations  till  he  has 
observed  all  the  possible  cases  bearing  on  the  same,  he  would  never 
arise  to  that  law  which  governs  it,  and  hence  science  would  become 
impossible.  It  is  sufficient,  therefore,  in  order  to  deduce  a  law  said  to 
govern  a  certain  class  of  phenomena  that  asufficient  number  of  repeated 
experiments  warrant  the  conclusion,  and  that  whenever  the  experi- 
ment has  been  made  the  phenomenon  has  been  manifested  always  as 
if  governed  by  such  law.  Now,  coming  to  our  subject,  Huxley  says 
that  the  criterion  to  distinguish  a  species  from  another  is  not  reliable, 
because  it  is  not  applicable  always  and  in  all  cases.  We  might  as  well 
say  that  the  law  of  universal  gravitation  is  not  reliable  or  infallible, 


62 

because  one  could  not  apply  it  in  the  case  of  the  heavenly  bodies,  as 
not  exactly  within  our  reach,  or  of  those  bodies  that  cannot  coroe 
under  our  observation.  It  is  not  necessary  that  we  should  make  the 
experiment  in  every  case,  but  it  is  amply  suflBcient  that  the  test  be 
applied  to  a  multitude  of  cases  and  always  found  to  be  reliable." 

Adele. — "Ob,  I  am  glad  I  put  the  question,  as  I  understand  now  a 
good  mawy  things  T  did  not  understand  before." 

Doctor. — "Let  ua  have  the  second  reason,  George." 

George. — "The  second  reason  is,  that  the  test  does  not  always 
succeed  in  the  cases  where  it  can  be  applied.  'For  example,' says 
Huxley,  'cases  are  cited  by  Mr.  Darwin  of  plants  which  are  more  fer- 
tile with  the  pollen  of  another  species  than  with  their  own.'  Page 
274." 

Adele. — "Do  you  mean  by  pollen  those  granules  of  dust  which  fall 
from  the  flower  in  bloom  to  fertilize  the  ovules?"' 

George. — "Yes,  certainly  ;  and  Darwin  says  that  certain  plants  are 
more  fertile  with  the  pollen  of  another  species  than  with  their  own, 
which,  of  course,  takes  all  reliability  from  the  criterion  of  a  eptcies." 

Doctor. — "I  beg  your  pardon,  George,  but  your  great  lights  of 
science  forget  themselves  in  this  particular  as  in  many  more;  but  they 
are  so  accustomed  to  contradiction  that  the  most  glaring  one  can 
hardly  arouse  their  attention,  and  they  stand  in  no  fear  of  their  ad- 
mirers ;  for  such  read  their  works,  if  at  all,  with  such  carelessness  and 
such  blind  trust  as  to  be  prepared  to  swallow  any  number  of  incon- 
sistencies, provided  it  bears  the  parentage  of  Darwin,  Huxley  &  Co." 

Adele. — "Something  terrible  is  coming,  I  j\tn  sure. 

Doctor. — "George,  please  to  answer  me.  Have  Mr.  Darwin,  Hux- 
ley &  Co.  any  criterion  or  test  whereby  to  know  and  to  detect  one  spe- 
cies from  another  ?" 

George. — "Not  that  I  am  aware  of." 

Doctor. — "And  they  reject  the  criterion  of  all  physiologists,  ancient 
and  modern  ?" 

George. — "They  do." 

Doctor. — "Then  how  do  they  know  one  species  from  another  ?" 

George. — "lam  sure  I  cannot  tell." 

Doctor. — "Then  tiuse  great  lights,  after  telling  us  that  there  is  no 
criterion  to  safely  tell  one  species  from  another,  with  great  serious- 
ness and  magisterial  tone  talk  of  one  species  being  different  from 
another,  and  how  one  species  of  pLmts  is  more  fertile  with  the  pollen 
of  another  specits.  Gentlemen,  iro you  aware  of  your  contradiction? 
How  can  you  talk  with  such  asfurance  ?  How  can  you  call  one 
species  different  from  another,  when  you  maintain  there  is  no  safe 
guide  to  know  thut ?' 

Adele. — "Dear  me!  It  is  a  pity  to  see  such  pet  idols,  so  exalted,  so 


63 

far  above  the  multitude,  exhibit  such  a  miserable  spectacle  of  Billy 
reasoning,  and  of  contradiction  and  inconsistency  I" 

Doctor. — "It  seems  incredible,  yet  it  is  so.  Here  are  our  greatest 
evolutionists  contending  most  strenuously  that  there  is  no  certain  cri- 
terion to  tell  one  species  from  another,  and  then  flatly  contradicting 
themselves  by  urging  certain  alleged  facts  of  plants  of  one  species 
being  more  fertile  with  the  pollen  of  a  different  species!" 

Adele. — "Then  we  may  conclude  that  the  criterion  admitted  by 
all  physiologists  and  scientists,  and  called  admirable  by  Huxley  him- 
self, stands,  in  spite  of  the  two  silly  objections  brought  forward  by  the 
latter,  and  we  may  take  it  as  an  infallible  rule  that  two  plants  or  ani- 
mals which  produce  offspring  like  themselves,  which  in  their  turn  can- 
do  the  s.ime,  belong  to  the  same  species,  no  matter  how  different  in 
race;  and  that  two  plants  or  animals  which  produce  nothing,  or  an 
offspring  infertile  and  barren,  must  belong  to  two   different  species." 

George. — "Species,  then,  are  easily  distinguishable  one  from 
another." 

Doctor. — "We  must  rest  here  at  present." 


ELEVENTH  ARTICLE. 

EVOLUTIONISM   m  CONTRADICTED   BY   HISTORY. 

Doctor. — "George,  what  is  the  consequence  which  follows  from  the 
criterion  we  spoke  of  in  our  last  conversation  as  to  the  theory  of  evolu- 
tion?" 

George. — "If  I  apprehend  it  rightly,  why  a  most  fatal  one.  If  we 
admit  that  plants  and  animals  of  one  species  cannot  propagate  with 
plants  and  animals  of  another  species,  and  that  the  forced  union  of 
an  individual  of  one  species  with  another  of  a  different  species  either 
results  in  nothing  or  in  an  individual  perfectly  barren  and  infertile, 
it  is  evident  that  there  cannot  be  a  change,  a  transformation  of  one 
species  into  another,  and  that  evolution  in  that  case  is  easily  dis- 
posed of." 

Doctor. — "Excellently  said,  George.  But  we  will  not  take  advan- 
tage of  that  criterion.  We  will  proceed  as  if  it  did  not  exist,  and  as  if 
physiologists  had  not  concluded  it  from  secular  experiences  of  num- 
berless experiments  and  facts.  We  will  do  the  work  over  again,  and 
examine  whether  there  are  in  nature  fixed  species  which  can  never  be 
transformed  into  others;  or  whether  from  facts  we  are  justified  to 
maintain  that  species  are  not  fixed,  but  are  in  a  state  of  passage  and 
transition." 


64 

Adele. — "So  we  won't  mind  what  we  said  in  our  last  conversation, 
and  we  will  investigate  from  facte  whether  we  are  to  cling  to  that  cri- 
terion and  its  consequence  or  whether  we  can  hold  the  evolution  of 
one  species  into  another." 

Doctor. — 'Just  so  ;  we  will  begin  the  inquiry  from  history.  I  say 
that  history,  as  far  back  as  we  can  go,  always  exhibits  species  as  fixed, 
permanent,  and  unalterable.  George,  what  do  historical  monuments 
say  ?" 

George. — "If  we  limit  ourselves  to  historical  monuments  I  must 
freely  own  that  they  are  all  against  evolution  and  tranef or  mists." 

Adele — "We  will  judge  of  it  when  you  have  brought  them  for- 
ward." 

George. — "I  take  them  from  the  book  of  Mr.  Faivre,  'La  Vari- 
abilite  des  especes  et  ses  limites,'  Paris,  1868,  p.  162  :  'The  lava  which 
covered  in  the  year  76  of  the  Christian  era  the  cities  of  Pompeii  and 
Htrculaneum  enveloped,  without  altering  them,  remnants  of  organic 
life  at  such  an  epoch.  In  the  house  of  a  painter  they  have  found  a 
collection  of  shell  fish,  and  in  the  shop  of  a  fruiterer  vases  filled  with 
chestnuts,  olives,  and  nuts.  In  spite  of  the  eighteen  centuries  which 
have  intervened  between  us  and  that  event  no  appreciable  change  has 
been  found  in  the  forms  of  those  remnants  and  the  fruits  of  our  own 
time.  Aristotle,  who  lived  over  two  thousand  years  ago ;  Galien,  who 
lived  in  the  second  century  of  our  era,  have  given  descriptions  so  en- 
tirely exact  of  animals  and  plants  as  to  their  exterior  or  anatomical 
qualities  that  one  would  think  they  were  traced  by  the  hand  of  some 
modern  naturalist " 

Adele. — "Well,  the  alleged  testimonies  have  some  respectability, 
as  they  are  a  couple  of  thousand  years  old." 

George. — "But  the  monuments  of  ancient  Egypt  present  a  more 
respectable  front." 

Doctor. — "George,  before  you  go  on,  I  would  like  to  call  your 
attention  to  the  fact  that,  i  f  there  be  a  country  in  the  world  which 
could  be  said  to  be  most  favorable  to  the  evolution  of  species,  that 
country  is  certainly  Egypt.' 

Adele.— "Why?" 

Doctor. — "Because  the  richness  of  its  flora  and  its  fauna,  the  fer- 
tility of  the  soil,  the  elevation  of  its  temperature,  together  with  the 
abundance  of  humidity,  the  industry  of  man  also,  attested  by  so  many 
gigantic  works,  all  conspired  to  excite  the  energy  and  activity  of  organ- 
isms, and  must  have  highly  favored  evolution." 

George.— "And  yet  in  spile  of  all  these  causes  organisms  have 
remained  fixed  though  so  many  centuries  have  passed,  and  they  ap- 
pear as  the  present  ones." 

Adele. — "The  subject  begins  to  be  highly  interesting.  You  main- 


65 

tain  that  vegetables  and  animals  of  modern  Egypt  are  the  same  m 
form  and  shape  with  the  animals  and  plants  of  ancient  Egypt." 

George. — 'To  bo  Bure,  a  comparison  between  them  will  prove  the 
assertion.  Every  one  knows,  for  instance,  that  the  ancient  Egyjjtiane 
were  great  experts  in  embalming  bodies,  and  that  they  laid  in  their 
sepulchres  not  only  human  bodies,  but  also  the  bodies  of  animals  of 
all  kind  ;  all  these  testimonies  of  past  ages,  known  under  the  name 
of  mummies,  have  been  preserved  without  alteration  till  our  time.  In 
the  expedition  to  Egypt,  commanded  by  Napoleon,  at  the  end  of  the 
last  century,  the  ecientit^ts  who  formed  part  of  it  gathered  a  great  num- 
ber of  such  mummies  and  brought  them  to  France,  where  they  be- 
came the  object  of  the  most  earnest  examination  of  the  most  cele- 
brated naturalists  of  the  time.  Cuvier,  Lamarck,  Lacdp&de  studied 
them  in  their  soiallest  details,  as  far  as  concerned  higher  animals. 
The  celebrated  entomologist,  Latreille,  did  the  same  with  regard  to 
insects,  and  all  discovered  a  perfect  identity  of  characters  between  the 
animals  thirty  or  forty  centuries  old,  and  those  of  our  own  times." 

Adele. — ''I  disliked  to  interrupt  you,  but  really  I  must  have  the 
explanation  of  that  long  word  entomologist  ?" 

George. — "I  beg  your  pardon  ;  that  word  is  taken  from  two  Greek 
words:  entomon,  insect ;  and  logos,  discourse.  Hence  entomology  is  the 
science  of  insects,  and  he  who  studies  them  is  an  entomologist." 

Adele. — "Many  thanks ;  go  on,  please." 

George. — "The  equality  between  the  animals  of  those  times  "S-nd 
those  of  our  own  was  so  great  that  even  Lamarck  himself,  though  a 
partisan  of  the  mutability  of  the  species,  was  obliged  to  admit  it.  The 
ox,  the  dog,  the  cat,  the  monkey,  the  ichneumon,  the  crocodile,  the 
sacred  pilulary,  the  domestic  bee,  are  to-day  what  they  were  forty  cen- 
turies ago.  On  examining  the  animals  engraven  on  the  obelisks  trans- 
ported from  Egypt  to  Rome,  Cuvier  has  likewise  observed  this  equal- 
ity between  animals  of  our  time,  such  as  the  ibis,  a  kind  of  wading 
bird,  with  a  long  slender  bill  and  long  broad  wings,  or  the  vulture,  the 
falcon,  the  Egyptian  goose,  the  rail,  the  lapwing,  the  asp,  the  cerastes, 
the  hippopotamus,  and  many  others." 

Doctor.— "Yes ;  and  since  that  time  new  researches  and  new  com- 
parisons have  been  made  and  they  have  all  corroborated  the  preceding 
observations.  They  have  found  in  the  cellars  or  vaults — called  hypo- 
gea — of  ancient  Thebes  and  of  Memphis  figures,  very  easilj'^  discernible, 
of  the  E:^yptian  giraffe  or  cimelopard,  the  male  lion,  the  crocodile  and 
others,  exactly  like  to  tho«e  of  our  own  time.  And  not  only  the  species 
but  even  the  races  have  remained  perfectly  iatact.  The  greatest  part 
of  the  varieties  of  dogs  represented  oq  the  h  is  reliefs  in  the  Egyptian 
tomb3  yet  exists  to  d  ly  in  that  country  or  its  adjacent  places.  One  can 
easily  recognize  the  dog  iu  the  bazaars  of  Cairo  and  of  the  other  cities 


of  contemporary  Egypt,  the  dog  of  Dongolah,  which  is  met  with  in  the 
villages  of  Nubia,  the  large  greyhound  of  the  north  of  Africa,  etc," 

Adele. — "Very  interesting,  indeed." 

George. — "Plants  have  not  changed  any  more  than  animals.  Very 
able  botanists  such  as  Kunth,  Jusaien,  Candolle,  and  very  recently 
Professor  Unger,  have  made  such  examination.  Kunth,  observing 
fruits,  seeds,  fragments  of  plants  found  in  tombs,  has  recognized  wheat 
dates,  papyrus,  the  palm-tree,  the  orange,  the  pomegranate,  the  vine,  the 
fig,  the  acacia  of  Farnese,  and  others.  'The  remains  which  have  been 
examined  belong,'  says  Kunth,  'all  of  them  to  vegetables  which  are 
met  wilh  to  day  in  those  countries  ;  the  most  exact  comparison  having 
discovered  no  difference  whatever.'  Bonastre,  Passalacqua,  Candolle 
confirm  the  indications  given  by  the  learned  German  professor. 
Unger,  on  examining  the  bricks  used  in  the  year  3400  before  our  era, 
in  the  building  of  the  pyramid  of  Dashour,  has  extracted  from  the  straw 
and  the  sand,  of  which  they  were  partially  formed,  some  organic  rem- 
nants the  preservation  of  which  permitted  a  very  attentive  study;  in 
these  remnants  he  has  recognized,  among  the  cultivated  plants,  wheit, 
barley,  pease,  flax,  and  among  other  vegetables  the  radish,  the  chrysan- 
themum, or  golden  fl  jwer  of  the  harvest.  Time  had  not  rendered 
these  forms  unrecognizable." 

Doctor. — "Alongside  of  these  proofs,  derived  from  the  remnant  of 
long  past  ages,  we  may  place  others  drawn,  so  to  speak,  from  the  living 
annals  of  nature.  There  are  found,  here  and  there,  trees  the  longevity 
of  which,  altogether  extraordinary,  is  attested  either  by  tradition  or 
by  their  colossal  dimensions.  Botanists  reckon  their  age  with  suffi- 
cient certainty  from  their  height,  the  volume  of  their  trunk,  and  the 
number  of  layers  of  which  they  are  composed.  We  can  mention 
among  these  veterans  of  the  vegetable  kingdom  the  gigantic  chestnut 
tree  of  Etna,  which,  at  the  time  of  Pliny,  the  naturalist,  was  already 
strong  and  vigorous,  and  which  they  calculate  to  be  twenty  centuries 
old  ;  the  Baobab  of  Cape  Verd,  measured  by  Adansou,  which  would 
carry  an  age  of  five  thousand  years ;  the  famous  California  Segu  ja, 
whose  head  rise  nearly  three  hundred  feet  in  the  air  and  whose  cir- 
"cumfereuce  measures  about  ninety  feet,  and  to  which  naturalists  ha,ve 
given  the  trifle  age  of  sixty  centuries;  the  cypress  of  Oaxaca,  under 
the  shadow  of  which  Cortes  sheltered  himself  and  his  little  ar:iiy, 
claims  also  an  age  of  forty  centuries.  Now  allowing  a  certain  margin 
and  latitude  in  the  reckoning  of  the  respective  ages  o.f  these  veteran 
trees,  it  is  no  less  certain  that  they  have  seen  generation  after  genera- 
tion succeed  each  other  almost  without  number.  And  the  fact  stands 
that  trees  of  the  same  kind  growing  round  about  them  or  in  their 
vicinity  do  not  differ  one  important  iota  .^rom  the  ancient  representa- 
tives of  their  Boecies." 


67 

George. — "I  want  to  refer  to  another  fact,  Doctor,  which  bears  very 
great  analogy  to  the  preceding  ones.  There  have  often  been  found 
in  fhe  ancient  tombs  of  the  Egyptian  mummies  grains  of  wheat.  The 
Couiit  of  Sternberg  had  the  happy  thought  of  sowing  these  grains,  and 
the  result  was  that  in  spite  of  their  three  or  four  thousand  years  of 
age  they  bloomed  and  bore  fruit;  and  it  has  been  found  that  the 
jiliint  which  grew  from  that  seed  is  identical  with  the  wheat  with  loose 
ear.  From  which  we  must  conclude  that  the  species  existed  in  ancient 
Egypt,  and  that  it  has  been  transmitted  without  alteration  to  the 
present  time." 

Adele. — "Well,  gentlemen,  what  do  you  infer  from  all  the  facts  of 
history  which  you  have  so  happily  quoted  ?" 

Doctor. — "We  draw  the  general  conclusion  which  gives  a  death 
blow  to'all  evolution  and  transformism  so  far  as  history  is  concerned 
— that  all  facts  of  history  relating  to  the  vegetable  or  animal  kingdom 
triumphantly  prove  that  there  has  been  in  the  course  of  thirty,  foity, 
fifty  or  sixty  centuries  no  alteration  of  any  importance  in  the  species 
of  plants  or  animals;  those  known  to  us  to  have  existed  six  thousand 
years  ago  being  the  same  as  those  existing  under  our  own  eyei'." 

George.— "The  words  of  the  great  Cuvier  come  in  apropos:  'I 
know,'  he  says,  'that  some  naturalists  reckon  very  much  on  myriads 
of  centuries  which  they  accumulate  at  once  by  a  stroke  of  the  pen, 
but  in  matters  of  this  kind  we  cannot  judge  of  that  which  a  long 
time  may  effect,  except  by  mentally  multiplying  that  which  a  shorter 
time  does.'  Now  thrf  e,  four,  six  thousand  years  have  effected  no 
trangformatiou  in  animalr*  and  plants.  Hence  the  right  conclusion 
must  be  that  a  longer  time,  no  matter  what,  may  not  produce  any." 

Adele. — "I  would  like  to  hear  how  transformiats  get  over  this 
difficulty,  which  seems  to  my  poor  judgment  a  very  weighty  one." 

Doctor. — "Oh,  very  easily  indeed !  Catch  them  sticking  at  a  trifle. 
They  have  hit  upon  a  very  ingenious  invention.  Th^y  alone  have 
discovered  that  species  pass  successively  through  two  phases;  one 
phase,  daring  which  they  are  subject  to  very  rapid  variations;  the 
other  phase,  immeasurably  longer  than  the  first,  during  which  they 
are  found  to  be  fixed  and  vary  no  longer." 

Adele.— "Very  nice,  indeed !  That  seems  to  assert  tranformism  in 
other  words.  Well,  and  what  are  we  to  think  of  this  second  theory  or 
explanation?" 

Doctor. — "That  it  is  a  gratuitous  hypothesis,  resting  on  no  facts 
whatever.  To  establish  it,  it  would  be  necessary  to  bring  forward 
facts  of  the  actual  passage  of  the  species  through  this  phase  or  period 
of  change,  and  to  do  that  it  would  be  necessary  to  trace  up  their  gene- 
alogy, till  the  species  from  which  they  are  derived  mark  the  point 
which  has  separated  the  two  periods,  and  exhibit  them  in  that  transi- 


68 

tory  phase  when  they  are  endeavoriug  to  attain  a  definite  and 
fixed  form.  They  have  neither  done  this  nor  can  they  do  it.  In 
the  second  place,  they  ought  to  be  kind  enough  to  explain  why  species, 
at  other  times  variable  so  far  as  to  pass  from  one  into  another,  are  no 
longer  so.  The  laws  of  nature  are  not  so  subject  to  change,  and  to 
make  us  accept  this  passage  of  species  from  a  state  variable  and  rest- 
less to  one  fixed  and  permanent,  transformists  ought  to  allege  at 
least  some  plausible  reason.  Thirdly,  they  cite  the  example  of  certain 
species  which  actually  give  birth  to  a  number  of  varieties,  and  affirm 
that  all  species  have  travelled  through  this  unstable  state ;  but  if  it  be 
so,  we  claim  the  right  to  ask  an  explanation,  a  reason,  a  motive,  why 
the  latter  are  yet  in  that  state  of  change,  and  others  living  under  the 
same  climate,  on  the  same  soil,  and  under  conditions  of  life. exactly 
identical,  have  reached  the  permanent  and  fixed  period.  Until  they 
have  accounted  for  this  satisfactorily,  we  shall  rest  in  the  testimony  of 
history  as  to  the  immutability  ot  species." 

Adele.— "I  have  certainly  great  opinion  and  respect  for  science, 
and  a  certain  quantum  of  the  same  respect  for  scientists  of  every  shade 
and  color.  But  the  more  I  hear  from  them  the  stronger  grows  my 
inclination  to  laugh,  not  at  real  science,  as  at  scientists  so  called.  Here 
it  seems  to  me  that  these  celebrated  great  evolutionists  and  transfor- 
mists have  made  up  their  minds  to  maintain,  right  or  wrong,  at  all 
hazards,  their  system  of  evolution.  Very  well;  you  come  to  them 
with  history  in  hand  and  say :  My  friends,  you  hold  that  species  vary 
one  into  another,  that  one  species  is  gradually  transformed  into  an- 
other. History— let  me  call  your  attention  upon  it— history  is  against 
you;  it  shows  that  species  of  plants  and  animals  are  the  same  to-day 
as  they  were  thirty,  forty,  fifty,  sixty  centuries  ago.  This  is  proven  by 
millions  of  facts  and  observations  and  comparisons  made  by  the  best, 
the  most  expert  scientists  of  our  century  and  of  the  last.  What  is  the 
answer  of. evolutionists  to  that  argument?  Why,  we  were  perfectly 
aware,  they  say,  that  history  proves  the  fixednei-s  and  permanence  of 
species.  That  is  no  news  to  us  ;  but  you  must  know  that  species  pass 
through  a  double  period,  one  of  change  and  transformation,  which 
occurred  before  historical  times,  and  the  other  of  fixedness  and  per- 
manence, which  fortunately  began  with  history  and  continues  to  re- 
main so.  Hence  you  can  account  for  changes  required  by  our  theory 
and  for  the  permanence  exacted  by  the  facts  of  history.  You  ask 
them,  what  proofs  have  you  of  the  existence  of  that  prehistorical 
period  ?  What  proofs  ?  they  reply.  Why,  are  we  not  entitled  to  some 
confidence  on  the  part  ot  our  readers  ?  Is  not  the  principal  right  of  a 
scientist  to  draw  largely  on  the  imagination  ?  And  when  he  is  in  a 
corner,  to  have  recourse  to  some  remote  period  about  which  nothing 
is  known  or  can  be  known  ?    Pray,  gentlemen,  would  not  all  this  pro- 


voke  the  risibility  of  the  most  serious  judge,  not  to  speak  of  the  same 
in  a  poor,  heedless  girl  like  your  servant  ?" 


TWELFTH  ARTICLE. 

EVOLUTION   IN   CONTKAUICTION    WITH   PALEONTOLOGY. 

Doctor.— "You  remember,  Adele,  that  evolutionists  claim  half  a 
dozen  sciences  in  support  of  their  system.  One  of  these  sciences  upon 
which  they  rely  as  their  staunch  supporter  is  paleontology.  I  sup- 
pose you  understand  the  word." 

Adele.— "Not  a  bit;  pray,  give  me  its  meaning.' 

Doctor. — "It  comes  from  the  Greek,  as  usual :  pcdeos,  ancient ;  onta, 
beings  ;  and  logos,  discourse— the  science  of  ancient  things.  But  modern 
scientists,  strictly  speaking,  understand  by  paleontology  that  science 
which  treats  of  fossil  remains  both  animal  and  vegetable." 

Adele. — "Now,  uncle,  if  you  will  be  so  kind  as  to  throw  a  little 
light  on  the  words/ossi/  remains,  I  shall  understand  the  whole  thing 
perfectly." 

Doctor. — "Of  course  you  understand  what  remains  signifies.  The 
original  signification  of  fossil  is  something  dug  out  of  the  earth ;  but 
now  it  is  restricted  to  express  the  petrified  remains  of  vegetables  and 
animals  ;  so  that  by  the  words  fossil  remains  we  intend  to  signify  those 
remains  of  vegetables  and  animals  which  by  being  buried  into  the 
earth  a  long  lime  have  become  petrified,  or  become  stony,  and  appear 
so  when  dug  out.'' 

Adele.— "I  understand  now.  Paleontology  is  that  science  which 
treats  of  those  remains  of  plants  and  animals  which,  by  being  buried 
into  the  earth  and  remaining  there  for  ages,  have  become  petrified  or 
stony." 

Doctor. — 'Very  good.  And  do  you  see  the  great  advantage  to  be 
derived  from  that  science  ?" 

Adele. — "Not  exactly." 

Doctor. — "The  remains  of  plants  and  animals,  preserved  in  the 
bosom  of  the  earth,  enable  us  to  go  beyond  historical  times  even  as  far 
back  aa  the  first  appearance  of  life,  and  they  are  therefore  of  the  great- 
est advantage  to  scientists  as  so  many  truly  prehistorical  monuments. 
Now,  evolutionists  claim  that  these  fossil  remains  prove  the  theory  of 
transformation  of  one  species  into  another.  But  before  we  come  to 
speak  of  this  we  must  take  a  peep  at  geology  and  get  a  little  informa- 
tion about  a  point  or  two,  else  what  we  are  going  to  say  would  be  a 
sealed  book  to  you.  Of  course  you  understand  that  geology  means 
the  science  which  studies  the  earth,  and  the  formation,  nature  and 
location  of  its  different  comoonents  ?" 


70 

Adele. — "Certainly  I  understand  that.  I  remember,  when  I  was 
at  school,  to  ha\e  learned  that  the  earih  is  composed  of  difierent  ma- 
terihls,  and  that  such  materials  are  found  at  certain  depths,  others  are 
seen  higher  up,  and  others  higher  still,  and  that  to  investigate  the  na- 
ture of  such  materials,  the  manner  according  to  which  they  formed, 
how  they  came  to  be  located  where  they  are  found,  is  the  special 
study  of  the  gf^ologist." 

George — "Very  cleverly  said  indeed,  Miss  Adele.  It  is  evident 
that  you  did  not  lose  all  your  time  d  jring  your  school  days." 

Adele. — "Spare  your  irony,  if  you  please,  Mr.  George." 

Doctor. — "Then  you  are  aware  that  all  these  different  materials 
appear  fornied  into  beds  or  strata  ;  some  horizontally;  others,  espe- 
cially those  found  at  much  lower  depth,  are  more  inclined.  In 
various  places  they  are  found  bent  serpentlike,as  the  leaves  of  a  book 
violently  preased  down.  Now  that  p  irt  of  geology  which  treats  of  the 
nature,  formation,  and  location  of  these  beds,  the  depth  at  which  they 
are  discovered,  and  the  form  and  appearance  of  the  same,  is  called 
stratiographical  geology,  that  is,  description  of  the  strata  or  beds  of  the 
earth,  their  nature  and  formation,  and  shape.  George,  please  to  tell 
us  now  how  geologists  have  tried  to  classify  these  different  beds,  or 
strata." 

George. — "I  will  do  my  best.  Of  course  every  one  understands 
that  all  these  materials  out  of  which,  as  far  as  men  have  been  able  to 
discover,  our  mother  earth  is  composed,  were  formed  but  very  slowly 
and  gradually,  some  of  them  requiring  millions  of  centuries  to  be  con- 
structed." 

Adele. — "Why  do  you  say  as  far  as  men  have  been  able  to  dis- 
cover ?■' 

George. — "You  know,  of  course,  that  man  has  only  been  able  to 
reach,  as  it  were,  the  outward  covering,  the  crust,  so  to  speak,  of  the 
earth  ;  all  his  endeavors  to  dig  n  aching  only  a  very  small  portion  of 
the  earth's  depth;  hence  the  reason  why  we  must  say  as  far  as  man 
has  been  >  ble  to  discover;  for  if  we  could  descend  deeper  and  deeper 
into  the  bowt-ls  of  the  earth  many  a  profound  mystery  would  be  un- 
ravelled to  us  on  things  we  hardly  have  a  suspicion  of." 

Adele. — "I  see." 

George. —  'Geologists  have  divided  all  the  different  materials  they 
have  been  able  to  discover  into  so  many  groups,  which  they  call 
epochs,  eras,  or  periods,  in  view  of  the  time  of  their  formation  ;  each 
group  being  assigned  a  special  name  appropriate  to  the  time  of  its  for- 
mation, the  depth  at  which  it  is  found,  and  to  some  particular  remains 
found  in  its  bosom." 

Doctor. — "Very  good,  George.  Tell  us  now,  how  many  such  epochs 
or  periods  are  admitted  by  geologists  ?" 


71 

George. — "They  assign  seven  princiiial  epochs.  The  first  is  the 
Azoic." 

Adele. — "What  do  you  mean  by  that?" 

George. — ''Geologists  mean  by  the  Azoic  epoch  those  layers  or 
beds  of  minerals  in  which  are  found  no  relics  whatever  of  either 
plants  or  animals  that  is  no  relics  of  life.  These  beds  are  composed  of 
rocks,  of  granite  pirphyry.and  thelike,and  wlmh  are  the  result  of  other 
elements,  such  as  siltz,  albumen,  potassium,  soda, magnesia, and  iron." 
Adele. — "The  tirat  epoch,  then,  is  easy  to  understand.  Its  layers 
are  principally  granite  rocks,  and  in  them  no  trace  or  relics  of  animals 
or  plants  are  to  he  found." 

Doctor. — ''Please  to  fix  the  individual  peculiarities  of  each  epoch 
in  order  that  you  may  understand  at  once  what  is  meant  when  in  our 
discussion  each  epoch  is  referred  to." 

Adele. — ''I  will,  with  pleasure,  if  every  atje  or  period  is  as  easy  to 
understand  as  the  Az()ic.     What  next,  Mr.  George?" 

George. — ''We  may  refer  to  this  Azoic  epoch,  the  beds  called 
Laurentian  and  Huronian,  because  found  on  the  borders  of  the  St, 
Lawrence  and  Lake  Huron  in  Canada.  In  these  have  been  found 
traces  of  an  organism,  or  rather  structure,  resembliog  that  of  a  polypus. 
Such  formation  was  believed  by  some  to  be  organic,  and  by  others  to 
be  simply  mineral.  This  fossil  was  christened  by  the  name  Eozoon, 
that  is,  the  dawn  of  life.  It  is  now  classed  in  the  Protozoic  age,  that; 
is,  the  period  of  embryo  and  rudimental  animals  " 

Adele.— 'I  like  that  name — dawn  of  life,  or  Eozoon.  What  is  the 
next  epoch  ?" 

George. — "The  Paleozoic,  so-called  becAuse  in  it  we  find  unmis- 
takable vestiges  of  life.  It  is  divided,  according  to  the  order  of  the 
formation  of  the  ditf  rent  beds,  into  the  Cambrian,  Silurian,  Devonian, 
Carboniferous  and  Permian  periods." 

Adele. — "I  suppose  you  will  condescend  to  throw  a  word  of  ex- 
planation on  each  of  those  epithets?" 

George. — "With  pleasure.  The  first  system  of  beds  is  called 
Cambrian,  relating  to  Cambria  or  Wales,  where  those  beds  are  found. 
Some  are  composed  of  clay,  generally  of  bl.ick  color,  and  others  of 
mixture  of  very  flue  sand  and  clay.  Very  clear  vestiges  of  vegetables, 
zoophites,  or  animal  plants,  and  shell  fish  are  found  in  them." 

Adele. — "V.  ry  good,  indeed,  and  very  clear." 

George. — "The  next  beds,  which  are  an  extension  of  the  Cambrian, 
and  which  are  composed  of  slate,  of  brown  frte  stone,  and  of  fine  sand 
and  clay,  contain  many  fossils  of  nlge,  an  order  of  plants  comprising 
sea  weeds  and  moss ;  also,  of  cephalopoda,  a  kind  of  mollusk  or  shell 
fish,  having  a  circle  of  eight  or  ten  tentacles  around  the  mouth,  such 
as  the  cuttle  fish  ;  also,  immense  deposits  of  corals." 


72 

Adele.— "How  did  these  beds  come  to  be  called  Silurians  ?" 

Doctor.— "Because  they  were  best  developed  in  that  part  of  England 
and  Wales  formerly  included  in  the  ancient  kingdom  of  the  Silures, 
an  old  people  of  Britain." 

George.— "Next  come  the  Devonian  beds,  because  found  in  Devon- 
shire. They  lie  right  over  the  Silurian  beds,  and  are  composed  of  old 
red  slate  and  carboniferous  chalk.  Remains  of  moss  and  mushrooms, 
and  of  fishes  having  the  whole  body  covered  with  scales,  have  been 
discovered  in  these  layers.  The  next  is  the  carboniferous  resting  on 
the  Devonian  beds,  and  containing  stratas  of  anthracite;  that  is,  hard 
coal  and  pit  coal ;  it  has  also  its  remains  of  the  vegetable  and  animal 
kingdoms.  The  Permian  contains  the  new  red  slate,  some  chalky 
magnesia,  bituminous  clay,  and  some  minerals  of  bronze  or  iron;  also, 
fossils  of  the  vegetable  and  animal  kind." 

Adele.— "Now  we  have  disposed  of  the  Primary  epoch,  if  I  don't 
mistake  ;  let  us  pass  to  the  Secondary." 

George. — "That  is  the  reason  why  it  is  called  with  the  Greek  word 
Meozoic,  or  middle  epoch.  It  is  divided  into  two  principal  groups, 
called  the  Triassic  and  Jurissic.  The  first  was  called  by  the  scientists  of 
Germany,  where  it  was  best  developed,  on  account  of  -its  tripartite 
character,  7Vir;s— that  is,  triple  group.  The  second  is  called  Jurassic, 
from  its  admirable  development  and  exposure  in  the  range  of  the  Jura. 
The  first  contains  new  red  slate,  variegated  slate  and  chalky  shells,  and 
other  components.  In  it  are  found  all  the  remains  of  plants  which 
come  under  the  general  name  of  coniferae,  such  as  fir  trees,  pine, 
cedar,  juniper,  and  so  forth  ;  the  animals  are  represented  by  an  extra- 
ordinary abundance  of  shell  fish  and  of  all  kind  of  Saurians,  a  general 
name  applied  to  the  family  of  lizards.  In  the  Jurassic  period,  which 
is  composed  of  clay,  inferior,  medium  and  superior,  of  difierent  color, 
and  of  slate  and  other  materials,  we  find  that  the  remains  of  fern  ap- 
pear rather  small,  and  the  coniferae  assume  very  large  proportions, 
and  are  found  in  great  abundance.  We  meet  also  with  marine  rep- 
tiles, and  especially  with  that  very  singular  one  called  pterodactyle, 
from  the  Greek  words  fteron,  wing,  and  d  cti/le,  fiuger,  with  winged 
1  fingers.  For  that  animal  has  been  looked  upon  as  a  bird,  a  bat,  and  a 
flying  reptile;  because  he  exhibits  the  bend  and  neck  of  a  bird,  the 
structure  and  wings  of  a  bat,  and  the  skull  flattened  like  a  reptile,  and 
a  bill  with  no  less  thmi  sixty  teeth,  ready  to  do  execution  at  a  mo- 
ment's notice  on  any  unfortunate  little  animal  that  may  come  within 
his  reach." 

Adeb.— "He  must  be  a  beauty  to  look  at." 

George.— "It  is  in  ttie  deep  strata  of  this  Jurassic  period  where  are 
found  the  first  rudiments  of  the  mammalia.  This  Secondary  epoch  has 
been  called  the  age  of  the  reptiles. 


73 

"In  the  Tertiary  epoch,  we  find  deposit  of  rocks  c  i  chalk,  of  granite, 
porphyry,  slate  and  remnants  of  pulverized  shells  and  corals.  The 
mammalia  predominate  at  this  epoch.  It  is  subdivided  into  three 
periods,  the  Eocenes,  that  is,  the  dawn  of  the  new  world;  the  Miocenes, 
the  middle  new  world  ;    and  the  Pliocenes,  the  world  newer  still." 

Adele. — "Well,  what  remains  or  fossils  are  found  in  each  of  those 
periods  ?" 

George. — "In  the  first  are  found  many  coniferous  plants,  such  as 
palm  tree,  oiks  ;  and  among  the  animals  many  pachyderm — that  is, 
animals  with  thick  skin ;  from  two  Greek  words,  pachis,  thick,  and 
derma,  skin  ;  for  instance,  the  rhinoceros,  the  elephant  and  the  ano- 
plotherium,  ancient  animal,  and  which  had  a  certain  resemblance 
with  the  rhinoceros  and  the  tapir,  which  last  in  his  turn  is  allied  to 
the  rhinoceros  and  the  hog.  The  monkey  now  makes  his  first 
appearance  on  the  fcene." 

Adele. — "My  compliments  to  his  high  and  worshipful  mighti- 
ness !" 

George. — "The  next  period,  or  the  Miocenes,  is  formed  of  the 
product  of  the  acacias,  platanus,  and  poplars;  and  of  enormous  mam- 
malia, the  mbsfremarkable  among  which  is  the  dinotherium,  from 
the  Greek  dino,  terrible,  and  therion,  a.mma.\,  the  terrible  animal ;  the 
mastodon,  from  mastus,  nipple,  and  odontos,  teeth;  a  huge  mammifer- 
ous  quatiruped,  now  extinct,  allied  to  the  elephant,  and  go  called  from 
the  conical  projections  upon  the  surface  of  his  molar  teeth." 

Adele. — "I  am  glad  he  is  gone.  He  would  frighten  one  to  death 
by  his  ugly  appearance." 

George. — 'The Pliocene  beds  contain  plants,  the  forms  of  which 
resemble  very  much  those  of  our  own  time,  though  we  find  none  of 
our  present  ones  in  the  Tertiary  epoch.  The  mastodon  disappears  to 
make  way  for  the  horse,  the  camel  and  the  hippopotamus." 

Adele. — "We  begin  to  feel  at  home  now.    But  what  is  the  hippo- 
potamus?" 

George. — "He  is  a  kind  of  aquatic  animal,  and  might  be  called 
river  horse.  The  next  epoch  is  the  Quaternary.  It  contains  sedi- 
ments and  deposits  of  anterior  materials  mixed  up,  of  volcanic  pro- 
ducts mixed  with  ancient  substances.  The  flora  is  like  ours  and  the 
fauna  contains  the  so-called  elephant,  primigenius  or  mammoth-,  the 
hippopotamus  major,  and  other  species  now  extinct,  together  with  the 
savage  beasts,  which  are  yet  living  in  some  parts  of  the  earth.  At  this 
epoch  appear  human  remains  and  products  of  human  art  and  industry. 
This  epoch  is  called  also  glacial." 

Adele. — "Let  me  see,  now,  if  I  can  remember  all  that  has  been 
said.  The  crust  of  the  earth  resulting  of  various  materials  and  of  beds 
and  layers  of  such  materials,  formed  at  different  times,  has  been  divided 


by  geoiogists  into  diflferent  epochs.  The  first  and  the  lowest  forma- 
tion is  called  the  Azoic,  because  no  appearance  of  life,  either  vegetable 
or  animal,  is  to  be  seen  in  it.  It  consists  of  beds  of  granite  and 
porphyry.  Next  comes  the  Laurentian  and  Huronic  period,  which 
is  called  Protozoic,  because  the  first  traces  of  life  is  found  in  its  beds. 
Then  comes  the  primary  period,  called  Paleozoic,  CQr>si8ting  of  the 
Cambrian,  Silurian,  Devonian,  Carboniferous  and  Permian.  In  thetn 
remains  of  plants  of  the  lowest  kind,  such  as  moss,  sea- weed  and  fern, 
are  to  be  observed  together  with  the  fossils  of  shellfish.  Then  comes 
the  Meozoic  or  middle  epoch.  Life  begins  to  take  larger  proportions 
in  them,  as  we  find  remains  of  the  coniferse  or  family  of  large  trees  as 
the  fir,  the  pine,  etc.,  and  the  fossils  of  the  whole  tribe  of  lizards  and 
reptiles.  I'j  the  Tertiary  period  the  life  of  plants  appear  in  much 
large  proportions,  and  in  the  animal  kingdom  enter  upon  the  scene 
for  the  first  time  the  mammalia,  and  the  evolutioniss'  great  and  best 
friend  and  ancestor,  the  monkey.  In  the  Quaternary  period  we  have 
the  flora  in  great  luxuriance,  much  akin  to  our  own  fl(/ra.  Many  of 
the  extinct  huee  mammalia,  alongside  of  others,  which  remain  alive 
today,  and  for  the  first  time  remains  of  man  and  of  his  skill  and 
enterprise.     What  do  you  think,  Mr.  George,  of  my  recapitulation  ?" 

George. — "It  is  classical,  indeed." 

Doctor. — "Well,  now  that  we  have  disposed  l>ntfly  of  that  part  of 
geology  which  was  necessary  to  the  understanding  of  our  argument, 
we  must  return  to  the  subject  of  evolution.  You  recollect,  Adele,  the 
argument  we  made  from  history  ?" 

Adele. — "Certainly.  We  proved  that  all  the  species  and  plants, 
which  are  found  to  have  lived  thirty  or  forty  centuries  ago — that  is  as 
far  back  as  we  can  go — are  exactly  the  same  with  those  which  we  have 
at  the  present  time.  Hence  we  concluded  that,  according  to  historical 
documents,  species  of  plants  and  animals  are  demonstrated  to  be  fixed 
permanent  and  unchangeable." 

Doctor. — "Very  well ;  what  reply  do  evolutionists  make  to  the  his- 
torical argument,  George  ?" 

Ge  rge. — "They  laugh  at  the  historical  argument,  being  highly 
amused  at  our  simplicity  as  miking  so  much  account  of  thirty  oi 
forty  petty  centuries.  It  is  millions,  they  say,  that  must  be  taken  into 
account  in  this  matter;  nay,  hundreds  and  thousands  of  millions  of 
centuries  must  have  been  required  to  effect  the  transformation  of 
species.  It  is  in  vain  therefore,  they  conclude,  to  allege  history 
against  evolution  to  prove  the  immutability  of  species." 

Doctor. — "We  will  then  transfer  the  question  from  history  to 
paleontology  and  to  prehistorical  times,  and  give  them  all  the  millions 
and  milliards  which  may  suit  their  fancy." 

Adele. — "Very  liberal,  indeed." 


75 

Doctor. — "And  we  contend  that  if  evolution  and  transformisra  be 
true,  and  can  be  so  proved  by  paleontology,  the  upholders  of  that 
hypothesis  must  show  three  things.  Pay  attention,  A  dele.  Ist,  they 
must  show  by  paleontology  that  cliangea  have  really  taken  place  in 
species.  2d,  that  species  have  gradually  been  perfecting  themselves. 
3d,  paleontology  must  show  also  sjine  species  in  the  way  of  transition 
or  passage  medium  between  the  species  that  is  endeavoring  to  be 
tranformed,  and  showing  traces  and  signs  of  the  species  which  it  is 
going  to  become.  Now,  George,  let  us  take  epoch  after  epoch,  begin- 
ning from  the  last,  and  let  us  see  what  pLileontology  has  got  to  say  on 
the  first  question.  Has  there  ever  been  any  change  in  species  ?  Or,  in 
other  words,  does  paleontology  show  any  change  ever  to  hive  taken 
place  in  species  ?  Of  course,  you  understand  I  am  not  talking  of  occa- 
sional changes,  but  substantial  ones,  such  as  would  pave  the  way  to 
change  a  plant  or  an  animal  from  a  lower  one  into  a  higher." 

Adele. — "But  I  think  we  have  had  enough  to-day,  or  you  are 
bound  to  give  me  a  headache." 

Doctor. — "Well,  at  our  next  conversation." 


THIRTEENTH  ARTICLE. 

DOES   PALEONTOLOGY   SHOW  ANY   SUBSTANTIAL    CHANGE   EVER   TO   HAVE 
TAKEN   PLACE   IN   SPECIES  ? 

Adele. — "Remember,  uncle,  that  in  this  conversation  we  have  to 
prove  that  all  the  species  of  animals  and  plants  of  our  time,  and  which 
have  outlived  the  enormous  time  which  h.^s  been  necessary  for  all  the 
various  formation  of  the  difTerent  beds  of  the  earth,  have  not  changed, 
but  are  exactly  the  same  as  the  remains  we  find  in  the  geological 
epochs." 

Doctor.— "Very  good,  Adele.  Now,  George,  begin  from  the  Qua- 
ternary epoch." 

George. — "Of  all  the  species  of  animals  found  in  that  epoch  some 
are  extinct;  others  have  emigrated  from  the  regions  where  remains 
similar  to  them  are  found  ;  and  some  have  survived,  and  are  to  be  met 
with  in  the  temperate  countries  of  Europe,  full  of  life  and  movement." 

DLictor. — "And  are  any  of  those  found  to  be  different  in  any  im- 
portant point  from  those  we  find  in  the  beds  of  the  Quaternary?" 

George. — "None  that  I  know  of.  Dupoht,  a  French  scientist,  in 
his  work  'Man  in  the  Stone  Age,'  gives  the  enumeration  of  the  mam- 
malia formed  in  the  epoch  we  are  speaking  of,  and  the  result  :'f.  as  fol- 
lows :  'Seven  species  of  th«  mammoth  kind  are  extinct.    Two  have 


76 

emigrated  to  America,  the  Ursus  ferox — the  great  or  ferocious  bear ;  and 
the  Cervus  Canadenses — the  Canadian  stag.  Five  species  have  emi- 
grated to  the  Polar  regions ;  two  have  gone  East;  three  to  the  Alps, 
and  two  to  Africa — in  all  fourteen  emigrated.'  Of  twenty-five  species, 
of  which  six  have  been  destroyed  by  man,  the  rest  remain  intact  and 
are  living  in  Belgium  exactly  the  same  as  are  found  in  the  Quater- 
nary epoch.  I  will  give  one  instance,  the  bat.  It  was  contemporary 
of  the  mammoth,  with  which  it  was  associated  in  the  valley  de  la 
Lesse.  The  renowned  Belgian  naturalist  Van  Beneden  made  a  special 
study  of  it  and  compared  it  with  the  bat  of  the  present  time.  He  did 
not  find  the  least  difference  among  these  and  the  bats  of  the  Quater- 
nary period,  in  spite  of  the  struggle  for  life  which  must  have  been 
going  on  among  them,  whose  way  of  feeding  is  the  same,  and  who  can- 
not find  sufficient  insects  except  on  the  hot  days,  and  who  must  have 
gone  through  long  periods  of  cold.  He  has  proved  that  the  species 
buried  in  caves  are  absolutely  the  foe-simile  of  those  found  to  day. 
'They  are  so  like  each  other  that  those  who  are  more  abundant  to-day 
have  left  the  greatest  number  of  remains.'  The  same  naturalist 
aflBrms  that  it  is  the  same  case  with  other  animals  living  in  the  same 
place,  mammalia,  mollusks  and  reptiles.  'All  these  species,'  he  says, 
'are  to  day  what  they  once  were.  The  fox  has  continued  to  live  along- 
side of  the  wolf,  the  weasel  alongside  of  the  polecat  and  muskrat.  The 
remains  of  all  these  animals  are  perfectly  similar  to  those  which  are 
living  to-day  on  the  spot,  aiid  no  diflerence  even  of  size  could  be  dis- 
covered among  them.'     {Revue  Gentrule,  Nov.,  71.)" 

Doctor. — "Well,  George,  enough  has  been  said  of  animals  of  this 
epoch.    Can  you  show  the  same  as  to  plants  ?" 

George.— "The  vegetable  kingdom  of  this  period  furnishes  facts  as 
certain  and  as  conclusive  against  transformism..  In  the  Canton  Zurich 
they  have  found  organic  remains  mounting  up  beyond  the  glacial 
period.  Among  them  M.  Heer,  whose  authority  on  the  subject  of 
vegetable  fossils  is  incontestible,  has  found  vegetables  which  ju-e  living 
yet  in  the  Alps.  He  has  recognized  the  wild  pine,  the  maple,  two 
varieties  of  the  larch,  and  the  hazel  tree.  These  species  have  run  the 
long  course  of  centuries  after  centuries  without  the  least  modification. 
We  may  conclude,  therefore,  that  the  verdict  of  Paleontology,  as  far  as 
the  Quaternary  epoch,  is  decidedly  against  evolution." 

Doctor.— "Well,  we  have  done  with  the  testimony  of  the  Quater- 
nary epoch  against  the  theory  of  transformism.  We  must  consult  the 
other  epochs  and  see  what  they  may  allege  against  the  same.  George* 
what  have  the  Tertiary  and  Secondary  period  got  to  say  with  regard  to 
the  permanence  of  the  species  ?" 

George. — "They  give  the  same  answer,  that  species  are  perfectly 
stable  and  permanent.    Professor  Agassiz  has  shown  that  the  poly- 


paries— that  is,  the  houses  which  polypus  ronstruct,  such  aa  corals  or 
sponges,  and  of  which  the  hunks  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  have  been 
formed— have  remained  always  the  same  and  like  to  each  other  for  the 
last,  two  hundred  thousand  years.  According  to  hi?  calculation,  no 
less  than  that  amount  of  yeirs  lias  been  necessary  to  accumulate  such 
an  enormous  quantity  of  chalky  madrepore,  which  extends  itself  for 
the  space  of  tw^  degrees  of  latitude,  and  which  make  up  nearly  the 
whole  island  of  Florida." 

Adele, — "Now  I  beg  your  pardon,  Mr.  George.  I  understand  what 
is  meant  by  chalky  well  enough,  but  I  cannot  make  out  what  is  meant 
by  madrepore." 

George. — "A  madrepore  is  a  species  of  coral  having  stems  like  a 
tree." 

Adele. — "Oh  !  then  you  mean  that  the  whole  island  of  Florida  is 
formed  by  such  chalky  corals,  and  that  it  took  about  two  hundred 
thousand  years  to  accumulate?" 

George. — "That  is  A gassiz's calculation  in  his  work  'On  the  Claesifica- 
tion  of  Species,'  page  80.  And  he  proves  that  they  have  remained  the 
same  ever  since.  Pouchet,  another  scientist,  and  an  evolutionist  to  boot, 
furnishes  us  a  very  curious  and  interesting  information  with  regard  to 
ants  in  the  Tertiary,  and  even  the  Jurassic  period.  'Ants,'  he  says,  'are 
older  than  Mount  Blanc.  They  existed  in  tlie  Jurassic  times  very  little 
different  from  uhat  tJiey  are  now.  Whilst  an  interior  eea  as  yet  con- 
cealed the  space  where  later  on  Paris  was  to  be,  they  swarmed  in  the 
regions  in  the  centre  of  Europe,  just  emerged  from  the  water.  Their 
remains  fill  the  thick  Led  of  ground  at  Oeningen  on  the  border  of  the 
lake  of  Constance  and  at  Radoboy  in  Croatia  ;  the  rock  is  black  with 
ants  so  admirably  preserved,  with  their  p;iws  and  their  little  horns. 
Professor  Heer  of  Zurich,  and  Mayr  of  Vienna,  have  found  more  than 
a  hundred  species  of  such  ants  in  the  Cantons  of  Oeningen  and  Rado- 
boy, many  rf  U'hich  seem  to  be  identical  tvith  the  actual  ones.''" 

_A.(jele.— "I  would  not  suspect  that  such  little  tiny  creatures  would 
be  so  serviceable  in  the  question  of  evolution." 

George.— "The  same  author  adds:  'The  larvte  called  phryganea 
used  to  make,  as  those  of  today,  their  little  case  or  box  wherein  to 
lodge,  and  which  they  cn-ry  along  wherever  they  go.'  {Revue  des  deux 
Mondes,  Feb  ,  70,  page  702.)  They  have  found  plenty  of  them  in  the 
tertiary  bed  of  Auvergne,  and  much  more  in  Gergovie  and  Chap- 
tuzat." 

Adele— "Very  clear,  indeed,  if  one  knew  what  is  meant  by  the 
larvje  of  phryganea.  But  as  I  am  in  the  dark  about  that,  I  must  beg 
for  a  little  light." 

Doctor.— "They  call  larvae,  Adele,  the  worm  of  an  insect  to  be 
transformed  in  its  first  state  at  the  moment  it  issues  from  the  egg. 


78 

Phryganea  is  a  generic  name,  which  is  given  to  a  number  of  species  of 
water  flies.    Go  on,  George." 

George. — "We  have  the  testimony  of  another  evolutionist  with  re- 
gard to  the  secondary  grounds,  M.  ce  Saporta  (Revue  des  deux  Mondes, 
Oct.,  '69) :  'The  fresh  water  insect  and  MoUuska,'  he  says,  'of  the 
secondary  beds  difier  very  little  from  those  of  our  day  ;  with  regard  to 
this,  nature  has  changed  very  much  less  than  is  generally  imagined.'" 

Adele. — "Such  acknowledgments,  coming  from  two  evolutionists, 
as  you  say,  Mr.  George,  must  certainly  be  treasured  up  as  very  import- 
ant and  precious." 

Doctor. — "So  they  must;  but  to  go  on  with  the  subject,  it  is 
worthy  of  remark  that  carboniferous  beds  yield  another  example  how 
the  most  elementary  organisms  are  all  subject  to  this  immutabili-^^  of 
form.  It  is  very  interesting  to  read  the  observation  which  the  Count 
Castracane  and  other  scientist  s  have  made  on  the  diatomacese.  George, 
please  to  give  us  some  explanation  on  these  fossils  before  Adele  begins 
to  complain." 

George. — "For  the  knowledge  we  possess  of  these  beautiful  organ- 
isms, so  minute  as  to  be  undiscernible  by  our  naked  eye,  we  are  in- 
debted to  the  assistance  of  the  microscope.  It  was  not  till  towards  the 
close  of  the  last  century  that  the  first-known  forms  of  this  group  were 
discovered  by  0.  F.  Miiller.  Now  there  have  been  found  in  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland  no  less  than  a  thousand  forms,  and  Rabenhorst, 
in  the  index  to  his  Flora  of  Europe,  enumerates  no  less  than  4,000 
forms  which  have  been  discovered  throughout  the  Continent  of 
Europe.  The  earlier  observers  thought  them  to  be  plants.  Subse- 
quent authors,  including  Ehrenberg,  regarded  them  as  animals ;  but 
at  present,  in  consequence  of  their  analogy  to  other  organisms;  gener- 
ally acknowledged  to  be  vegetable,  as  regards  their  general  structure 
and  reproduction,  they  are  generally  classed  in  the  vegetable  kingdom." 

Adele. — "Is  there  plenty  of  such  deposits?" 

George, — 'Various  deposits  have  been  dibcovered  in  various  parte 
of  the  world,  some  the  deposit  of  fresh  and  some  of  salt  water.  Of 
these  the  most  remarkable  in  extent,  as  well  as  for  the  number  and 
beauty  of  species,  is  that  of  Richmond,  Virginia.  It  extends  for  nieiny 
miles,  and  at  some  places  it  is  no  less  than  forty  feet  deep.  The 
material  has  long  been  used  for  polishing  powder,  and  now  is  largely 
employed  in  the  manufacture  of  dynamite." 

Doctor. — "Now,  George,  please  take  the  Encyclopedia  Britannica 
and  read  the  concluding  words  of  the  article  under  that  name." 

George. — "Here  they  are.  'It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  existing 
species  of  Diatom  a  cetc  have  been  traced  so  far  down  as  the  lower  strata 
of  the  tertiary  formation,  and  though  the  generation  of  a  diatom  in 
the  space  of  a  few  months  far  exceeds  in  number  the  generation  of  a 


7b 

man  during  the  period  usually  assigned  to  the  existence  of  the  race, 
the  fossil  genera  and  species  are  In  all  respects,  to  the  most  minute  details, 
ideidical  with  the  mcmerous  living  representatives  of  their  class.'  Enc.  Britt. 
Volume  VII.,  art.  DiHtomacere." 

Doctor.— "Coming  now  to  the  secondary  formation  or  silurian 
beds,  we  have  the  testimony  of  the  celebrated  Joachim  Barrande." 

Adele. — "Who  is  he,  uncle  ?" 

Doctor.— "He  is  one  of  the  greatest  paleontologists  of  our  time. 
He  took  as  an  epigraph  of  his  works,  'Nothing  but  what  I  have  seen,' 
and  never  swerved  from  such  a  promise.  He  passed  his  life  in  observ- 
ing and  studying  a  restricted  piece  of  ground  in  the  centre  of  Bohe- 
mia, which  was  a  splendid  specimen  of  stratiographic  formation  ;  ex- 
hibiting, what  is  vtry  rarely  found,  a  complete  series  of  beds  one  upon 
the  other,  wherein  the  scientist  could  read,  in  a  language  tufficiently 
known  at  present,  the  first  phases  of  life  in  the  bosom  of  the  primitive 
seas.  In  his  'Silurian  system  in  the  centre  of  Bohemia,'  with  as  much 
ability  as  good  faith,  he  has  brought  forward  against  the  hypothesis  of 
evolution  objections  so  strong  that  none  of -the  upholders  of  that  theory 
has  ever  been  able  to  solve." 

Adele. — "That  makes  me  anxious  to  hear  what  he  has  said." 

Doctor. — "I  suppose  you  understand  what  naturalists  mean  by 
trilobites  ?" 

Adele.— "Indeed  I  do  not ;  it  is  the  first  time  I  have  had  the  plea- 
sure to  hear  such  a  word." 

Doctor.— "Well,  the  name  is  applied  loan  order  of  shellfish  having 
the  forepart  of  the  shell  in  the  form  of  a  large  shield  and  the  body 
cMfnpostd  of  numerous  parts  folding  over  one  another  like  those  of  the 
tail  of  the  lobster,  and  divided  through  the  whole  length  of  the  body 
into  three  ranges  of  lobes  by  two  parallel  furrows." 

Adele. — "I  seem  to  see  it  now." 

Doctor.— "Well,  in  three  hundred  and  fifty  forma  of  trilobites, 
which  he  examined  with  the  greatest  care,  and  there  were  species  among 
them  of  which  he  handled  more  than  six  thousand  saaiples,  he  dis- 
covered that  only  ten  of  those  species  exhibited  some  variations;  the 
three  hundred  and  forty  having  remained  invariable  and  unchange- 
able during  the  immense  time  of  their  specific  exis;eace.  More- 
over, he  has  discovered  and  proved  that  the  slight  variations  by  no 
means  affect  or  change  the  general  character  of  the  f-p-cies,  and,  in- 
stead of  growing  more  distinct  or  being  more  and  more  accentuated, 
a3  the  theory  of  evolution  would  require,  they  end  in  disappearing  al- 
together. Hence  during  the  incalculable  duration  of  the  Silurian 
times  none  of  the  three  hundred  and  fifty  species  of  trik  bi'os  of  Bo- 
hemia can  be  considered  as  having  produced  by  its  transforaition  or  de- 
velopment a  single  new  specific  form  perfectly  distinct  and  permanent." 


80 

Adele. — "That  is  hard  agaiost  evolutionism.  I  really  hoped  for 
their  own  eakes,  and  not  to  cause  them  too  much  chagrin,  that  they 
might  have  some  show  in  paleontology.  But  this  science  seems  to  be 
very  hard  against  them,  and  has  no  compassion  whatever," 

George. — 'Conclusions  similar  to  those  of  M.  Barrande  have  been 
drawn  by  other  scientists,  such  aa Davidson,  Carruthers,Pfaff,  Gosselet, 
Grand '  Eury,  from  the  Cephalopoda,  the  Acephala,  Brachiopoda  of 
the  Silurian  formation  from  the  Devonia /awna  of  the  Belgian  basin, 
from  the  reptiles  of  the  beginning  of  the  Triassic  epoch,  from  the 
Proboscidian  of  the  end  of  the  tertiary  era,  and  for  a  great  number  of 
fcBsil  vegetables  of  the  carboniferous  and  chalky  epochs." 

Adele.— "Excellently,  indeed  ;  only  you  will  have  to  explain  tome 
all  those  outlandish  foreign  words  with  which  you  scientists  fill  your 
big  mouths,  and  take  great  delight  in." 

George. — "I  beg  your  pardon.  I  cannot  but  use  the  language  which 
is  held  by  those  great  men.  But  I  am  ready  to  explain.  Please  eay 
what  you  want." 

Adele. — "What  do  you  mean  by  Cephalopoda  ?" 

George. — "I  mean  a  certain  class  of  shell-fish  which  have  a  circle 
of  eight  or  ten  feelers  around  the  mouth  called  tentacles,  such  as  the 
cuttle-fish,  the  quid,  and  so  forth." 

Adele. — "And  what  is  meant  by  Acephala  ?" 

George. — "A  class  of  shell-fish  which  have  no  head,  such  as  the 
lobster." 

Adele. — "And  what  is  the  other  name  you  mentioned,  commenc- 
ing with  a  B?    I  think  Brachiomada,  you  called  it.  " 

George. — "No,  I  said  Brachiopoda,  that  is,  an  order  of  headless 
shellfish,  having  two  long,  fleshy  spiral  arms." 

Adele.— "Now  I  understand;  and  you  maintain  that  all  such 
animals,  with  those  elegant  names  of  the  Silurian  formation,  and  the 
others  of  the  triassic  and  carboniferous  times,  have  x.ever  changed, 
and  exhibits  species  as  constant  and  as  immovable  as  the  trilobites?" 

George. — "Certainly,  and  I  will  quote  the  words  of  some  of  the 
scientists  I  mentioned.  'It  is  twenty- five  years,'  says  Gosselet, 
'since  I  have  been  studying  the  fossiliferous  horizons  of  the  Belgian 
basin,  and  isolating,  with  great  care,  one  from  the  other.  I  have  not 
as  yet  found  neither  in  time  nor  in  the  form  the  transformation  of 
two  types,  well  defined.'  'One  thing  is  certain,'  says  Carrutbei-t", 
*  that  the  amount  of  testimonies  of  the  fossil  y^ora  is  opposed  to  the 
doctrine  of  evolution.' " 

Doctor. — "Very  good,  George." 

George.— "There  is  another  testimony,  that  of  the  celebrated 
scientist  Grand '  Eury,  who  does  not  hesitate  in  writing  the  following 
words :  *  On  one  side  all  the  facts  are  in  favor  of  an  independent  crea- 


81 

tion  :  on  the  other  side  they  are  no  lees  contrary  to  Ivaneformism.'" 

Adele — "Where  did  you  get  all  this  information,  Mr.  George?" 

George. — "In  a  ^^rench  review,  called  the  Scientific  Revue,  April 
1879.' 

D-octor. — "We  may  conclude,  therefore,  this  part  of  the  subject  by 
recapitulating  what  we  have  said.  Do  you  remember,  Adele,  what  we 
undertook  to  demonstrate  ?" 

Adele. — "To  be  sure  I  do.  We  started  by  saying  that  evolutionists 
claimed  that  the  science  of  paleontology  was  in  their  favor.  We  then 
undertook  to  show  that  the  thing  stood  just  the  other  way." 

Doctor. — "And  how  have  we  proved  it?" 

Adele. — "We  have  found  on  the  testimony  of  great  scientists, 
some  of  them  evolutionists,  that  all  the  fossil  remains  of  the 
/iora  and  fauna  of  the  Secondary,  Tertiary  and  Quaternary  formations 
go  to  show  that  the  species  are  absolutely  fixed  and  permanent,  and 
that  no  change  whatever  has  ever  taken  place  in  them.  Hence  we 
may  conclude,  as  we  did  for  the  historical  argument,  that  the  specie* 
of  plants  and  animals  that  have  been  preserved  till  our  time  are  the 
same  as  those  found  in  prehistorical  times  in  the  formations  of  the 
difierent  beds,  which  have  taken  millions  of  years  to  be  constructed." 

Doctor. — "In  our  next  conversation  we  will  take  up  the  two  re- 
maining questions  belonging  to  this  part  of  the  subject." 


FOURTEENTH  ARTICLE. 

PALEONTOLOGY  DEMONSTRATES  THAT  SPECIES  HAVE  NOT  BEEN  PRO- 
GRESSING GRADUALLY  TOWARDS  PERFECTION — IT  AFFORDS  NO 
TRACES  OF   INTERMEDIARY  SPECIES. 

Doctor. — "We  must  now  enter  upon  the  second  question  :  Can  it 
be  shown  by  paleontology  that  the  different  species  of  animals  and 
plants  have  been  gradually  and  slowly  perfected  ?  You  must  under- 
stand, Adele,  that  this  continued  and  uninterrupted  progress  towards 
perfection  is  a  necessary  principle  of  evolution,  whicb  maintains  that 
all  possible  form  of  life  has  been  evolved  from  the  lowest  possible 
form.  If  such  be  the  case,  we  must  find  in  the  facts  of  paleontology 
proofs  of  the  continual  uninterrupted  effort  of  nature  to  lay  aside,  so 
to  speak,  the  present  form,  and  to  put  on  another  much  more  nobler 
and  higher,  and  when  this  is  attained  to  continue  the  effort  and  to 
seek  to  throw  off"  the  last  form  to  assume  another  yet  higher  and 
nobler.  Surely  if  this  struggle,  this  effort,  has  been  going  on  for  mil- 
lions and  millions  of  centuries,  we  must  find  evidence  of  it  in  the 
buried  remains  of  the  geological  formations." 


82 

Adele. — "I  understand  perfec'Jy." 

Doctor. — "Well,  then,  George,  is  there  any  evidence  in  paleontology 
of  such  presumed  progress  in  the  veef^able  or  animal  kingdom  ?" 

George. — "I  am  sorry  to  say  that  there  is  no  such  evidence.  On 
the  contrary,  we  fine  the  very  opposite  amply  and  fully  demonstrated, 
that  is,  that  species  appear  at  once  in  all  th<  perfection  convenient  to 
their  nature  and  never  change  any  more.    That  much  I  can  prove." 

Doctor. — "Before  we  proceed  with  the  proofs  I  want  both  of  you 
to  pay  attention  to  the  following  remark :  That  in  the  living  king- 
doms of  nature,  taken  in  their  harmony  and  union,  there  should  be  a 
certain  progress  which  is  manifested  according  to  the  order  of  times, 
is  evident  and  admitted  without  any  difficulty  by  everybody.  Man, 
who  appeared  last  upon  the  globe,  is  certainly  more  perfect  than  all 
those  creatures  who  preceded  him.  The  mammals  of  the  Tertiary 
and  Quaternary  epochs  have  an  organization  much  more  perfect  than 
the  Sauriens  of  the  Secondary,  and  these,  in  their  turn,  are  far 
superior  to  mollusks,  etc.  But  this  is  not  sufficient  to  make  good  the 
theory  of  evolutionists.  They  must  show  a  continual  progress  which, 
starting  from  the  minimum  form  of  life  from  the  simplest  living 
cell,  rises  up,  without  interruption  and  without  a  break,  to  those  living 
beings  which  have  the  most  complete  organization.  Now,  the  ques- 
tion arises,  does  paleontology  show  that  the  most  simple  and  imper- 
fect forms  of  life,  either  vegetable  or  animal,  appear  first  and  in  the 
lowest  formations,  and  gradually  assume  a  higher  appearance  in  those 
formations  which  are  higher  ?  Secondly,  does  paleontology  show  that 
in  the  lowest  strata  nothing  is  to  be  found  but  the  simplest  kind  of 
life,  whereas  the  more  perfect  organizations  are  to  be  met  with  only 
on  the  superior  beds  ?     What  do  you  say,  George  ?" 

George. — 'I  regret  to  eay  that  paleontology  is  adverse  to  evolution- 
ism in  those  two  respects.  Of  course,  every  one  can  ste  that  if  all 
living  beings  had  been  developed  from  the  lowest  possible  form  of 
life,  it  stands  to  reason  that  we  should  look  for  the  lowest  forms  of 
life  in  the  lowest  strata  or  beds,  and  expect  to  lind  nothing  more  in 
these  beds  but  the  lowest  forms  c  f  life.  Now,  the  coi.tiary  is  the  fact. 
T  will  quote  Agafsiz,  in  his  work  'Oa  the  Species':  'It  was  believed, 
not  very  long  ago,'  he  says,  'that  inferior  animals  had  lirst  made  their 
appearance  on  the  earth,  and  that  after  them  had  successively  ap- 
peared higher  typ. :  until  man  crowned  the  whole  series.  It  is 
acknowledged  to  day  that,  on  the  contrary,  there  have  existed  simul- 
taneously in  the  oldest  strata  representatives  of  numerous  families 
belonging  to  the  four  divisions  of  the  animal  kingdom.  It  has  been 
established  by  innumeraHe  facts  that  the  hypothesis  of  a  gradual  suc- 
cession of  the  radiatas,  the  mollu&k,  the  articulate,  the  vert(  br^ta,  is 
forever,  put  out  of  court.     We  have  an   indubitable   proof  that   the 


S3 

radiatfl,  the  mollusk  and  tlie  articulate  arc  to  be  met  with  together  in 
the  most  ancient  grounds  and  formations,  that  the  most  precocious 
among  the  vertebrata  are  associated  with  them,  and  that  all  of  them 
together  continue  to  be  found  across  the  geological  ages  up  to  our 
time.'" 

Adele.— "I  begin  to  see  the  force  of  the  argument.  How  could 
we  say  that  all  these  types  of  life  were  perfected  gradually  and  suc- 
cessively, and  that  they  sprang  and  were  developed  one  from  another 
when  they  are  found  simultaneously  in  the  lowest  beds?" 

George.— "If  we  rise  up  to  the  epoch  of  the  first  manifestation  of 
life  on  the  globe,  to  the  Silurian  epoch,  we  find  according  to  Contejeau 
that  it  is  not  always  the  representatives  of  the  lowest  which  start 
classes  and  families.  The  crinoidea,  in  fact,  hold  an  elevated  rank  in 
the  location  of  the  rndkUa,  and  this  family  begins  by  its  most  perfect 
types." 

Adele.— "I  need  not  remark,  Mr.  George,  that  the  crinoidea  and 
I  are  perfect  strangers  to  each  other." 

George.— 'Well,  I  shall  have  the  greatest  pleasure  to  introduce  you 
to  each  other.  They  are  a  family  of  nearly  extinct  animals,  so  called 
from  the  two  Greek  words :  cnnoii,  a  lily  ;  and  sihs,  from  having  a 
radiated,  lily-shaped  disk,  supported  on  a  jointed  stem.  Again,  the 
cephalopoda,  which  are  the  most  perfect  of  the  mollusks,and  the  first 
fishes,  all  of  the  pet^rocercal  family— that  is,  those  that  have  the  upper 
lobe  of  the  tail  larger  than  the  lower,  are  far  superior  in  every  regard 
to  those  which  people  our  seas." 

Doctor.— 'These  facts,  now  put  beyond  doubt,  very  little  agree  with 
the  doctrine  of  the  transformation  of  the  species,  their  continual  pro- 
gress and  perfection." 

George.— "The  carboniferous  fauna  ofiers  examples  of  the  same 
kind.  Of  course.  Miss  Adele,  you  know  what  is  meant  by  batrachia  and 
labyrinthodon  ?" 

Adele.— "Certainly  the  contrary,  Mr.  George." 

George.- "The  batrachia,  from  the  Greek  word  b'ltrams,  freg,  are  an 
order  of  reptiles,  including  frogs,  toads,  and  salamanders.  The  laby- 
rinthodon is  a  genus  of  reptiles  akin  to  the  batrachia,  but  much  su- 
perior to  the  ordinary  reptiles  under  that  name,  so  called  because  they 
possess  teeth  of  peculiar,  complicated  structure." 

Adele — ''Now  that  you  have  introduced  to  me  such  strange  com- 
pany, what  do  you  want  to  remark  ?"' 

George.— "That  in  the  carboniferous  formation  we  find  for  the 
tirst  time  batrachia;  and,  strange  to  say,  instead  of  meeting  with  the 
common  and  the  more  imperfect  of  these  reptiles  at  first,  we  find,  on 
the  contrary,  that  the  most  perfect,  that  is,  the  labyrinthodon,  take 
the  precedence  and  appear  first  on  the  scene.     How  then  can  life  be 


84 

supposed  to  have  commenced  from  the  least  periect  and  arisen 
gradually  to  the  more  perfect  ?  Again,  as  I  have  remarked,  reptiles 
make  their  first  appearance  in  the  carboniferous  beds.  Now, 
among  the  animals  that  have  preceded  them  on  the  globe  and 
those  which  exhibit  the  greatest  resemblance  and  aflfiuity  to  them, 
and  from  which  it  would  seem  they  should  have  derived  their  origin, 
are^s/ies,  and  consequently  the  first  representatives  of  the  reptile  kind 
ought  to  have  been  the  serpent,  or  snake,  having  no  feet,  and  mostly 
resembling  the  class  of  fishes." 

Adele. — "Well,  suppose  that  snakes,  being  without  feet  and  bear- 
ing the  greatest  resemblance  to  fishes,  should  have  succeeded  the 
latter.    Is  that  what  paleontology  shows  ?" 

George. —  'The  very  opposite.  The  very  first  to  be  met  with  in 
the  beds  alluded  to  are  the  whole  family  of  lizards,  which  are  more 
perfect  than  serpents.  Serpents  have  no  feet  and  can  only  crawl. 
The  lizard,  such  as  the  crocodile,  the  alligator,  the  iguana,  the  chame- 
lion,  has  four  distinct  limbs,  toes  clawed,  body  elongated,  rounded  and 
covered  with  scales.  They  are,  then,  as  superior  to  the  serpent  as  the 
power  of  walking  is  over  that  of  creeping." 

Adele. — "That  is  quite  remarkable." 

George. — "The  flora  of  the  Carboniferous  period  presents  the  same 
order  of  facts  against  evolution.  I  quote  the  celebrated  botanist,  Grand 
'Eury  ('Flora  Carbonifere.'p.  318) :  'A  fact,' he  says,  'which  is  the  more 
striking,  because  it  refers  to  those  fossil  plants  which  are  the  more 
analagous  to  living  plants,  is  the  greatest  perfection  of  the  first  in 
direct  opposition  to  the  hypothesis  of  a  progressive  development.'  He 
cites  Stur,  Hooker  and  Goeppert,  in  support  of  his  statement." 

Doctor. — "Let  us  pass  now  to  other  periods." 

George. — "Another  most  striking  fact  against  that  same  hypothesis 
is  that  the  reptiles  which  characterize  the  Secondary  epoch  are  cer- 
tainly more  perfect  than  those  of  the  preceding  period,  but,  strange  to 
say,  they  are  much  more  perfect  than  those  of  the  Tertiary  and  Modern 
periods.  Those  gigantic  Dinosaurians,  well  provided  with  members 
which  allow  them  to  walk,  to  swim,  to  fly  even,  are  incontestably 
superior  in  organization  as  well  as  in  shape  to  our  modern  reptiles. 
'The  class  of  reptiles,' we  may  then  conclude  with  Contejean,*  'has  not 
obeyed  the  law  of  a  continual  organic  perfection.  It  starts  with  types 
of  the  order  of  lizards,  to  be  sure,  of  a  medium  grade ;  it  afterwards  fur- 
nishes the  most  perfect  models,  such  as  crocodiles,*tortoi8e,  to  go  down 
gradually  and  produce  in  the  last  place  serpents.' " 

Doctor. — "Then  we  could  ask  tranformists  to  tell  us  what  mam- 


•  "Qeologie  et  Paleontologie,"  Paris. 


85 

male  of  our  own  epoch  are  a  progress  a^id  an  improvement  over  thoee 
of  the  Tertiary  ?  Are  they  better  organized  for  walking?  Are  they 
better  fitted  for  attack  or  for  defence  ?  Are  they  superior  to  these  in 
force,  iu  activity,  in  shape  and  structure  ?  It  would  be  highly  difficult 
to  maintain  and  to  demonstrate  that  such  is  the  case." 

Adele. — "Then  we  must  conclude  again  in  opposition  to  trans- 
formists,  and  say  :  Gentlemen,  if  your  hypothesis  were  true  we  should 
expect  as  a  necest'.sry  indispensable  coneequenceof  it  the  law  of  a  con- 
tinual organic  progress  in  the  species  of  plants  and  animals  found  in 
nature  :  we  should  expect  that  life,  beginning  from  the  lowest  and 
least  organization,  should  advance  gradually  but  surely,  and  manifest 
itself  in  organizntions,  one  more  elevated  than  the  preceding  ones. 
Hence  it  would  be  but  reasonable  to  expect  to  find  in  the  lowest  and 
most  ancient  geological  formations  only- the  lowest  and  the  least  appa- 
rition of  organic  life,  and  as  we  mount  up  in  the  stratas  and  beds,  ad- 
mire higher  structures,  better  and  more  complicated  organisms.  Is 
that  the  case?  Paleontology  answers :  No,  by  no  manner  of  means! 
In  the  lowest  strata  we  find  almost  all  kinds  of  organizations  living  to- 
gether in  peace,  sleeping  alongside  of  each  other,  one  would  think 
purposely  to  aggravate  and  provoke  the  patience  of  our  friends,  the 
evolutionists.  Isn't  it  too  bad  that  their  beautiful  romance  must  be 
shattered  to  the  four  winds  of  heaven  without  pity  or  compassion  ?" 

Doctor. — 'Enough,  Adele  ;  let  us  now  pass  to  the  other  question." 

Adele. — "I  forget  now  what  the  other  question  was." 

Doctor. — "We  did  not  as  yet  put  it  fairly  and  squarely,  though  we 
have  alluded  to  it.  Another  necessary  condition  attaches  to  the  trans- 
formist  hypothesis,  and  that  is  the  existence  of  intermediary  forms  of 
life  in  order  to  explain  and  make  the  passage  from  one  species  to  an- 
other possible.    Do  you  understand,  Adele  ?" 

Adele. — "I  think  I  do.  You  say  to  the  evolutionist:  Sir,  you 
maintain  that  one  speciss  has  been  transformed  into  another.  Very 
well.  You  will  grant  that  this  transformation  was  not  accomplished 
in  a  moment  and  at  one  stroke.  Surely  the  species,  before  being 
changed  into  another  altogether  different  and  more  perfect  in  every 
thing,  must  have  passed  through  some  other  transformations,  which 
may  be  called  medium  between  the  one  that  was  to  be  changed  and 
that  which  it  sought  to  attain.  If  so,  my  dear  sir  we  should  find  some 
signs,  some  remnants,  some  indications  of  these  medium  forms.  Is 
that  what  you  mean  ? ' 

Doctor. — 'Certainly  and  paleontology  should  administer  and  pro- 
vide such  intermedinry  forms.     Is  that  the  fact,  George  ?" 

George. — '"No  sir.  Paleontology  does  not  provide  such  intermedi- 
ary forms  at  all.  It  was  in  the  Silurian  seas  where  the  first  beings  be- 
longing to  a  certain  family  of  organic  life  were  discovered.    And  what 


86 

do  we  find?  We  discover  life  to  have  appeared  almost  on  a  sudden 
and  from  the  very  first  instant  under  a  multitude  of  forms.  We  find, 
at  the  same  time,  polyparies,  graptolites,  innumerable  brachiopodes, 
mollusks,  acephalous  and  gasterepodes  mnllusk,  very  great  number  of 
cephalopodee  and  trilobites  extremely  varied.  In  one  word,  the  Silurian 
/attna  numbers  over  ten  thousand  species,  and  in  certain  aspectf,  ac- 
cording to  Brirrande,  it  isimuch  richer  than  the  Tertiary /«M?ia  Where 
are  the  ancestors  of  such  legions  ?  By  what  intermediary  phases  have 
they  travelled  lo  reach  their  present  form  ?  Hiiw  did  the  firot  form  of 
life  manage  to  attain  to  and  to  shape  itself  into  these  ten. thousand  dif- 
ferent forms  ?  How  can  evolutionists  fill  up  such  gaps  ?  The  Carboni- 
ferous ^om,  which  exhibits  the  greatest  display  of  vegetable  life  on  the 
globe,  had  been  preceded  by  the  Devonian  ^ora,  but  the  same  types 
mark..the.twi^ora.s.  The  Silurian  ,/?ora  exhibits  nothing  but  sea-weed, 
except  in  thnse  superior  stratas  which  touch  on  the  Devonian yZora. 
But  what  relations  of  structure  and  form  can  be  discovered  between 
this  humble  marine  plant  and  the  Devonian  vegeables,  all  of  a  grand 
stature,  oftentimes  of  colossal  proportions  and  of  very  high  and  com- 
plex structure  ?" 

Doctor. — '  In  the  Secondary  epoch  we  meet  suddenly  with  reptiles 
as  strange  in  the  form  as  gigantic  in  proportions.  Where  are  the  pre- 
decessors of  these?  W^ithont  ancestors,  as  without  successors,  they 
appear  almost  suddenly  and  disappi^ar  in  the  same  manner,  without 
leaving  any  trace  of  their  apparition  on  the  earth  except  their  enor- 
mous remains.  Among  those  we  mention  the  plesiosaurus,  a  marine 
monster,  wilYi  the  long  neck  ;  the  ichthyosaurus,  the  lizard  fish,  re- 
sembling a.  crocodile,  and  having  four  feet  shaped  like  the  fin  of  a 
whale;  the  pvrodactyl,  or  the  flying  reptile,  so  called  from  the  fifth 
toe  of  the  anterior  feet  being  lengthened,  so  as  to  serve  as  the  expan- 
sor  of  membranous  wings ;  the  megalosaurus,  so  named  from  its 
gigantic  proportions ;  the  iguanodons,  another  reptile  monster,  vary- 
ing in  length  from  forty  to  seventy  feet." 

George. — "You  know,  doctor,  that  some  scientists  have  claimed 
that  the  archoepterix,  that  singular  animal  which  is  provided  with  a 
tail  of  twenty  vertebra  or  joints,  each  one  furnished  with  two  lateral 
wings,  is  like  a  transition  between  the  reptiles  and  the  birds." 

Doctor. — "I  know  it,  but  Huxley  and  Darwin  themselves  rank 
him  among  birds,  and  Professor  Owen  has  demonstrated  it.  Coming 
now  to  mammals,  we  may  inquire  by  what  transition  are  they 
attached  to  animals  which  preceded  them  on  the  globe?  Do  they 
originate  in  the  fish  or  in  the  reptile?  For  these  are  jthe  classes  which, 
by  their  organization,  are  the  nearest  to  the  mammals,  and  yet  by  what 
immense  distance  they  are  eeparatef-  from  the  latter!  Mammals,  then, 
have  appeared  suddenly,  without  anything  which  has  presaged  their 


87 

advent.     And  are  those  among  them  which  are  least  elevated  in   the 
series  the  ancestors  of  those  who  came  after  ?" 

George. — "Some  scientists  seem  to  have  thought  so,  and,  with 
your  leave,  Doctor,  I  will  give  the  easy  \<r  ces^  of  M.  Gaudry,  a  French 
scientist,  to  make  our  present  ox  to  come  fr.>ni  the  anthrac(jiherium, 
an  extinct  quadruped,  nelonging  to  the  boar  tribe.  You  want  an  ox 
to  come  from  that  boar?  Well,  nothing  C!\n  be  more  easily  accom- 
plished than.that.  You  must  make  four  slight*  changes.  Listen  to 
his  words:  '  It  seems  natural  to  think  that  the  fine  paws  of  the  rami 
nants  may  easily  be  supposed  to  have  been  a  transformation  of  the 
heavy  paws  of  the  pachyderms.  Four  means  seem  to  have  been  used 
to  arrive  at  such  simplification.  The  first  is  the  translation  or  mis- 
placing of  the  bone.  Secondly,  the  change  of  the  form  of  the  bone. 
Thirdly,  atrophy,  or  want  of  nourishment  of  the  bone,  which  reduces 
it  in  size.     Ftiurthly,  the  joining  or  soldering  of  the  bone.  " 

D  >ctor. — 'Do  this,  and  you  have  the  heavy,  thick  paw  of  the  boar 
changed  into  the  fine  one  of  the  ox  and  steer." 

Adele. — "That  certainly  is  a  comical  way  of  accounting  for  a 
change.  You  want  to  change  a  boar  into  an  ox  ?  la  that  all  ?  Why, 
change  the  bone^  of  the  boar  into  those  of  the  ox,  and  the  thing  is 
done.  My  dear  Mr.  Scientists,  I  would  like  to  say,  would  you  have  tht^ 
extreme  politeness  to  tell  me  how  you  can  change  the  bones  of  one 
into  those  of  the  other?  Don't  you  think  it  would  answer  just  as  well 
if  you  replied  to' the  question — How  did  the  perfect  mammals  spring 
from  the  imperfect? — why,  by  being  changed  into  them,  of  course. 
And  if  one  insisted— But  how  were  they  changed  ?  You  would  retort : 
Why,  by  being  changed!     What  can  be  plainer  than  that?" 

Doctor. — "Let  us  conclude,  then,  that  paleontology  affords  no 
evidence  whatsoever  of  intermediate  species  between  that  which  seeks 
to  be  transformed  and  the  one  which  it  seeks  to  assume,  and  that 
there  are  insurmountable  gaps  between  one  species  and  another,  each 
one  standing  apart  without  apparent  ancestors  and  without  descend- 
ants. That  this,  by  acknowledgment  of  Darwin  himself,  is  a  death- 
bljwtothe  doctrine  of  evolution.  'It  is,' says  Darwin,  'perhaps  the 
most  naturil  and  the  most  serious  objection  ever  raised  against  the 
theory  '  ('On  the  Origin  of  the  Species,'  p.  346.    London,  1869)." 

George. — "But  he  seeks  to  answer  it.  Doctor." 

Doctor. — "I  am  aware  of  that,  and  for  thoamusement  of  Adele  we 
will  consider  his  answer.    Give  it  in  his  own  words." 

George. — "  'For  my  part,  following  out  Lyell's  metaphor,  I  look  at 
the  geological  record  as  a  history  of  the  world  imperfectly  kept  and 
written  in  a  changing  dialect ;  of  this  history  we  possess  the  last  vol- 
ume alone,  relating  only  to  two  or  three  countries.  Of  this  volume 
only  here  and  there  a  short  chapter  has  been  preserved,  and  of  each 


88 

page  only  here  and  there  a  few  lines.  Each  word  of  the  slowly 
changing  language,  more  or  less  diflFerent  in  the  successive  chapters, 
may  represent  the  forms  of  life  which  are  entombed  in  our  consecu- 
tive formations,  and  which  falsely  appear  to  us  to  have  been  abruptly 
introduced.  On  this  view  the  difficulties  above  discussed  are  greatly 
diminished,  or  even  disappear '  (page  384).^ 

Doctor.— "What  do  you  think  of  that  reply,  Adele?" 
Adele. — "Why,  It  is  the  most  convenient  reply  that-  can  be  made. 
The  unknown,  the  hidden  and  the  absent  are  the  best  friends  of  the 
evoludonista.  You  miss  the  intermediary  species  to  account  for  oar 
pet  theory  ?  Vou  are  right,  and  nothing  can  be  more  reasonable;  but, 
unfortunately,  we  cannot  exactly  satisfy  your  curiosity,  when  the  very 
thing  you  want  was  to  be  iound  in  abundance  in  the  lost  pages  aud 
chapters  and  lines  of  the  book.  Oh!  if  we  had  them  we  could  content 
you  lo  satiety .  But  never  mind,  believe  that  what  you  seek  was  in 
the  lost  fragments,  and  you  will  see  how  the  difficulty  disappears  as  if 
by  enuhantment.    la  this  what  is  called  Modern  Science,  uncle  ?" 


FIFTEENTH  ARTICLE. 

IS  THE   SCIENCE   OF   EMBRYOLCteY   IN   FAVOR  OF   EVOLUTION? 

Doctor. — "The  next  science  which  evolutionists  claim  to  be  in 
their  favor  is  embryology." 

George. — "^TLe  science  of  embryology,'  says  Romanes,  'afiords 
perhaps  the  strongest  of  all  the  strong  arguments  in  favor  of  evolu- 
tion' (The  Scientific  Evidence  of  Organic  Evolution,'  by  G.  J.Ro- 
manes, Humboldt  Library,  p.  15)." 

Adele. — "That  is  very  forcible  language,  and  the  author  must  feel 
the  ground  under  him  to  be  very  solid,  to  speak  so  confidently." 

George. — "Though  in  my  opinion  he  abaies  very  much  his  pre- 
tensions vhen  he  says:  'From  the  nature  of  the  case, however,  the  evi- 
dence under  this  head  requires  special  training  to  appreciate,'" 

Adele. — "I  think  I  see  the  drift." 

Doctor. — "Certainly,  and  it  is  a  common  trick  of  our  modern 
scientists.  First  ihey  make  the  most  liberal  and  unbounded  promises 
of  what  we  should  expect  from  the  results  of  a  certain  science.  Then 
they  regret  very  much  that  the  thing  is  necessarily,  and  by  nature  of 
the  case,  above  the  general  capacity  of  the  reader;  and  finally  wind 
up  by  saying  in  fact,  if  not  in  so  many  wonln,  that  the  force  of  the 
argument  really  and  truly  can  only  be  appreciated  by  themselves,  and 
those  who  blindly  agree  with  them." 

Adele. — "Why,  that  is  very  amusing  indeed  !" 


89 

Doctor— "Well,  let  U3  come  to  the  point  and  see  what  evidence 
does  embryology  biine  forward  iu  help  of  evolution.  Of  course  you 
understand,  Adele,  what  is  embryology  ?'' 

Adele. — "I  do  in  a  certain  way,  but  I  would  rather  liaten  to  Mr. 
George." 

George.— "Well,  I  suppose  you  know  that  the  word  comes  from 
the  Greek  embrion,  begin  Ling  or  rudiments,  and  logos,  a  discourse  on 
rudiments.  It  is  now  applied  to  that  science  which  treats  of  the  rudi- 
ments of  living  beings,  and  may  be  defined  that  science  which  ob- 
serves all  those  primitive  cells  from  which  all  1  -iip;  beings  are  de- 
veloped in  cr  Jer  to  find  the  principles  and  the  laws  which  govern  that 
development." 

Adele.— "And  what  do  you  mean  by  a  cell  ?" 

George. — ■'Cells  are  the  first  units  of  living  matter  in  all  organic 
beings.  There  are  several  questions  about  them,  but  they  may  prove 
uninteresting  to  you." 

Adele.— "That  depends  on  yourseii  and  the  manner  of  your  ex- 
planations." 

George.— "Well,  I  will  try  to  do  my  best.  That  cells  are  the  first 
units  of  living  matter  in  all  organized  being,  and  that  the  origin  of  a 
living  cell  must  come  from  a  preexisting  living  cell,  is  agreed  upon  Isy 
all  scientists  generally.  But  whether  this  small,  tiny,  infmitesimally 
little  body  has  an  element  of  internal  structure  or  organization, 
limited  by  an  external  covering  and  ending,  in  the  interior,  in  a  cer- 
tain nucleus,  is  now  disputed  among  scientists.  Whatever  may  be 
said  or  mantained  about  this,  it  remains  as  absolutely  certain  that  a 
cell,  whether  itself  organized  or  not,  is  a  nucleated  mass  of  living  mat- 
ter originating  in  another  living  cell." 

Doctor. — "Thiat  science,  then,  which  studies  the  primitive  cells 
out  of  which  all  living  beings  are  developed,  is  the  one  which  is  brought 
to  give  its  testimony  in  favor  of  evolution." 

Adele. — "How,  uncle?" 

Doctor. — "  Wait  a  moment,  Adele,  we  have  not  given  sufficient 
importance  to  what  George  has  called  a  round,  tiny,  intinitesimally 
small  mass  of  living  matter.  George,  how  are  the  facts  of  this  science 
ascertained  ?" 

George.— "Principally  by  the  microscope." 

Adele.— "Why?" 

Geors^e. — "In  consequence  of  the  exceeding  smallness  and  size  of 
these  cells." 

Doctor. — "Tf-11  us  now,  what  argument  do  evolutionists  construct 
from  f^mbryology  ?" 

George. — "I  will  give  it  in  the  words  of  the  author  just  quoted: 
'I  will  observe  in  general  terms  that  the  higher  animals  almost  invari- 


90 

ably  pass  through  the  same  embryological  stages  as  the  lower  ones  up 
to  the  time  when  the  higher  animal  begins  to  assume  its  higher  char- 
acters. Thus,  for  instance,  to  take  the  caee  of  the  Highest  animal, 
man  ;  bis  development  begins  from  a  speck  of  living  matter  similar  to 
that  from  which  the  development  of  a  pl<int  begins;  and,  when  his 
animiii'y  btcomes  established,  he  exhibits  the  fundamental  anatomi- 
cal qualities  which  characterize  such  lowly  animals  as  the  jelly  fish. 
Next,  he  is  marked  oflf  as  a  vertebrate,  but  it  cannot  be  said  whether 
he  is  to  be  a  fish,  a  snake,  a  bird,  or  a  beast.  Later  on  it  is  evident 
that  he  is  to  be  a  mammal,  but  not  till  still  later  can  it  be  said  to  which 
order  of  mammals  he  belongs.  Now  this  progressive  inheritance,  by 
higher  types  of  embryological  chirtcters  common  to  lower  types,  is  a 
fact  which  tells  greatly  in  favor  of  the  theory  of  descent'  (page  166)." 

Doctor. — "I  suppose,  Adele,  you  understand  the  force  of  the  argu- 
ment?" 

Adele.— "I  am  not  quite  sure.  I  believe  that,  from  the  fact  of  the 
embryos  of  all  living  beings  in  their  first  stage  of  development  being  alike 
and  presenting  the  same  characters,  they  want  to  draw  the  conclusion 
that  all  living  beings  come  from  one  form  of  life." 

Doctor. — "Very  good.  Now  we  must  test  the  value  and  the  force 
of  this  strongest  of  the  strong  arguments  in  favor  of  evolution  accord- 
ing to  Mr.  Romanes.  In  the  first  place,  we  will  ascertain  the  following 
question.  Is  it  a  fact  that  the  embryos  of  ail  living  beings  in  their 
earliest  stage  of  development  are  all  alike  ?  Now,  George,  what  do 
you  say.  Can  real,  earnest,  serious  science  admit  this  to  be  a  fact  well 
ascertained,  whatever  may  be  the  assertions  of  enthusiastic  and  fanci- 
ful evolutionists?" 

George. — "We  cannot  admit  that  such  is  the  real  fact,  because  we 
cannot  rely  on  the  instrument  by  which  we  endeavor  to  ascertain  such 
things.  We  have  said  that  all  such  embipyo  cells  are  examined  by  the 
aid  of  the  microscope.  But  such  cells  are  so  infinitely  small,  so  to 
speak,  that  they  defy  the  most  powerful  microscope  at  lesst  as  far  as 
to  allow  themselves  to  be  studied  with  any  kind  of  distinctness,  accuracy, 
and  in  their  individual  characteristics.  Hence  their  similar  appear- 
ance under  the  microscope  proves  nothing  at  all  as  to  their  real  pinni- 
larity.  Suppose  one  of  us  should  look  from  a  high  mountain  upon  a 
plain  milts  away,  and  should  see  a  number  of  quadruped"  running  on 
that  pLiin,  all  that  he  could  ascertain  is  that  a  number  of  quadrupeds 
which  looked  all  alike  were  frisking  on  that  plain.  He  could  certainly 
fi  om  8uch  a  view  tell  nothing  about  their  difference  and  their  ind  ividual 
form  and  character.  Should  he  insist  on  claiming  that  that  distant 
view  is  sufficient  to  establish  their  resemblance,  and  to  eliminate 
.Mnd  reject  all  possible  difference  in  them,  he  would  be  put  down 
as  a  fool  or  a  joker.     Now,  such  is  our  case.    The  embryo  cells 


appear  under  the  most  powerful  inetrument  as  those  quadrupeila 
seen  from  the  mountain  far  away.  They  can  exhibit  only  a  gen- 
eral, vague,  indistinct  appearance,  and  thus  seem  to  be  all  alike. 
But  we  have  no  warrant  to  conclude  that  such  is  the  fact,  and  draw 
from  such  supposed  fact  a  scientific  conclusion  of  the  greatest  possible 
importance." 

Doctor. — "You  are  right,  George,  and  in  confirmation  of  this  I  want 
you  to  read  a  paijsage  of  a  lecture  by  Rev.  Father  Secchi  upon  the 
subject,  which  is  full  of  s'^nse  and  science." 

Adele. — "Uncle,  who  is  Father  Secchi  V 

Doctor.— "He  is  an  Italian  Jesuit,  one  of  the  grandest  intellects 
of  the  aee,  one  of  the  tir^t  astronomers  and  scientists  of  modern  times. 
His  lectures  on  the  sun,  which  he  delivered  in  Parir^,  drew  the  elite  of 
that  capital  and  the  very  first  scientists,  French  and  foreign,  who  ap- 
plauded him  to  the  skies.  The  passage  I  have  marked  for  George  to 
read  is  taken  from  the  first  lecure  on  the  grandeur  of  creation." 

George. — "  'We  are  placed  between  two  infinites ;  one  extremely 
great,  revealed  by  the  telescope  ;  the  other  extremely  small,  shown  by 
the  microscope ;  and  as  we  cannot  count  the  stars  in  a  nebulosa, 
neither  can  we  count  the  atoms  of  a  cell  nor  the  organs  of  an  insect.  It 
has  been  tried  to  calculate  the  quantity  of  atoms  necessary  to  form  the 
thousandth  part  of  the  side  of  an  inch  of  water,  and  it  has  been  found 
that  it  contains  three  thousand  nine  hundred  billions  of  atoms.  This 
number,  even  after  the  revision  of  the  calculation  made  by  the  same 
microscopist,  Soury,  is  held  by  him  to  be  only  approximately  exact.'" 

Adele. — "Dear  me!  it  takes  my  breath  away." 

George. — "But  water  is  one  of  the  least  complicated  substances. 
As  t(^  albumen,  it  is  found  that  the  diameter  of  the  last  molecule  of 
dry  albumen  is  three  hundred  and  eighty-three  times  that  of  water, 
and  the  little  cube  of  a  thousandth  part  of  an  inch,  according  to  cal- 
culation, then  would  contain  seventy  one  billions  of  these  mixed 
molecules.  Now  what  are,  alongside  of  such  dimensions,  the  distances 
of  the  closest  lines  of  Xorbert,  by  which  we  endeavor  to  enhance  the 
force  of  the  most  powerful  microscopes?  The  very  waves  of  light 
are  too  big  to  enable  us  to  discover  such  distances.  Ht-nce  we  may 
dnw  a  VL-ry  beneficial  conclusion  to  stigmatize  those  ignorant  and  im- 
pudent naturalists  who,  in  order  to  sustain  their  hypothesis  of  the 
iransformation  of  species,  allege  that  the  primitive  cells,  from  which 
are  developed  all  living  beings,  are  all  equal,  strengthening  themselves 
on  the  fact  that  their  instrument  does  not  reveal  any  difference  be- 
tween them.  Fools !  They  do  not  understand  that  with  the  most 
powerful  instrument  we  should  perceive  those  cells  only  as  so  many 
poin><,  as  like  two  tiny  points  would  appear  an  eleph:mt  and  a  horse 
gazed  :it  from  the  height  of  the  mo?.t  distant  mount'iin." 


92 

Adele. — "I  am  glad  that  I  made  the  acquaintance  of  Father 
Secchi;  and  I  can  see  the  force  of  his  argument  very  clearly,  in- 
deed." 

Doctor.— "We  will  conclude,  then,  that  the  embryos  of  all  living 
beings  in  the  first  stages  of  their  development,  being  in  reality  all 
equal  as  they  appear,  is  not  a  fact  which  can  be  relied  upon,  because 
those  primitive  cells  are  so  infinitely  small  that  no  instrument  could 
discover  any  individual  differences.  But  suppose  we  grant  the  fact, 
George,  would  it  really  prove  anything  in  favor  of  evolution?" 

George. — "I  don't  know,  I  am  sure." 

Doctor. — "Your  friend,  Romanes,  has  called  this  the  strongest  of 
all  the  strong  arguments  in  favor  of  evoluiion.  Before  reason  and 
common  sense  it  is  one  of  the  most  absurd  and  contradictory  things 
that  ever  came  out  of  their  heated  brains.  How  stands  the  case? 
Thus :  By  their  acknowledgment  all  living  beings,  plants  as  well 
as  animals,  in  the  first  stage  of  their  embryonic  state,  are  all 
the  same.  Very  good;  let  it  pass  for  a  moment.  How  long 
does  that  sameness  and  equality  last  ?  By  their  admission, 
until  the  animal  must  take  its  own  peculiar  character.  Now, 
suppose  we  want  to  examine  the  embryos  of  jelly  fish,  of  a  verte- 
brate, of  a  mammal.  They  all  start  from  a  tiny  speck  of  living  matter, 
and  so  far  the  sameness  and  equality  appears,  but  does  that  equality 
continue  ?  By  no  manner  of  means ;  the  first  speck  begins  to  present 
the  characters  of  a  jelly  fish,  and  stops  there;  the  second,  after  taking 
the  character  of  a  jelly  fish,  proceeds  to  exhibit  the  characters  of  verte- 
brate, and  stops  there ;  the  third,  after  taking  the  character  of  both,  does 
not  stop  there,  but  puts  on  the  character  of  a  mammal.  These  are  not 
only  facts  admitted  by  all  scientists,  but  b/  the  evolutionists  them 
selves.  And  how  ceuld  they  deny  them  ?  It  is  upon  this  that  the 
continuation  of  all  living  species  is  maintained.  Then,  if  the  first  speck 
of  living  matter  which  starts  the  three  diflFerent  species  of  animals  just 
mentioned  be  the  same  and  identical,  if  there  be  no  diSerence  between 
them,  if  the  one  has  no  peculiar  character  of  its  own  distinct  from  the 
others,  let  evolutionists  explain  how  is  it  that  the  embryo  of  the  jelly 
fish,  after  starting  on  equal  terms  with  the  embryos  of  the  vertebrate 
and  the  mammal,  stops  when  it  has  been  developed  into  a  jelly  fish,  and 
no  power  on  earth  could  make  it  unfold  any  further ;  and  again,  how 
is  it  that  the  embryo  of  the  vertebrate,  after  being  developed  first  into 
a  jelly  fish  aud  then  into  a  vertebrate,  comes  to  an  end  of  its  unfold- 
ing, and  no  created  power  can  make  it  go  a  step  further ;  whereas  the 
embryo  of  the  mammal,  after  going  to  all  the  stages  of  those  two, 
assumes  the  characteristics  of  a  mammal?  Take  again  another  in- 
stance—a number  of  mammals,  say  the  ox,  the  horse,  the  dog,  the 
gorilla,  man.    Let  us  suppose  that  the  embryos  of  those  five  distinct 


specieo  of  niummals  are  under  examination.  They  all  have  started 
from  the  speck  of  living  matter  perfectly  the  same  and  identical,  ac- 
cording to  our  friends  the  transformists.  They  proceed  in  the  growth 
and  develo{)i'.>eiit,  and  first  they  exhibit  the  appearance  of  a  jelly-fish  ; 
next  the  c''><'Mict  characters  of  a  vertebrate;  ;ig.iin,  they  take  up  the 
peculiar  and  distinct  marks  of  mammalia.  So  fur  we  may  suppose  they 
have  g.-»ne.  atep  hy  step,  allin  liar  mi  )ny  and  union,  and  no  ditierence  ap- 
pears in  them  ;  when,  lo  and  heboid!  there  is  a  divergence  of  the  most 
remarkable  nature.  The  embryo  of  the  ox  assumes  the  distinct  characters 
of  that  quadruped;  that  of  the  hor-ie  the  distinctive  peculiarities  of  its 
species  ;  that  of  the  dog  the  peculiar  feature  of  the  dog  kind  ;  the  gorilla 
those  of  the  monkey  tribe  ;  and  man  the  distinct  and  singular  traits  of 
mankind.  How  is  that  divergence,  so  fixed,  so  permanent,  so  immu- 
table, so  unalterable,  so  reliable,  accounted  for?  What  causes  it,  if 
the  speck  of  the  living  matter  constituting  the  embryos  of  all  those 
mammals  be  one  and  the  same,  presenting  the  identical  nature? 
The  only  possible  answer  to  the  quesiion— the  only  reasonable  an- 
swer—is, that  though  the  embryos  of  all  living  creatures  may  at  first 
present  some  appearance  of  resemblance  in  some  very  general  traits, 
each  one  is  distinct  in  nature  and  capacity  from  the  other,  as  much  as 
each  one  is  numt-rically  ditferent  from  the  diher." 

Adele.— "1  ?ee  that  our  dear  friends,  the  evolutionists,  are  always  the 
same ;  from  a  vague,  indistinct  general  resemblance  of  the  embryos 
of  all  living  ore  itures  in  the  very  first  stages  of  their  development, 
they  at  once  jump  to  the  conclusion  that  they  must  all  be  the  same 
offspring  of  one  primitive  form  of  life,  and  coolly,  and  with  all  possible 
simplicity  and  unconsciousness,  pass  over  the  immensely  important 
fact  that  the  different  results  must  necessarily  point  out  to  a  different 
cause  ai'd  principle." 

George.— "We  may  conclude  then  that  embryology  is  in  opposition 
to  the  theory  of  evolution.  First,  because  the  resemblance  discovered 
with  microscope  in  the  embryos  of  all  living  creatures  in  the  first  and 
earliest  stages  of  their  development  cannot  be  relied  upon.  And 
secondly,  because,  even  admitting  such  resemblance,  evolutionists  can- 
not explain  how  embryos  end  apparently  identical,  each  one  in  a 
different  species  of  living  creatures." 

Adele  — "I  am  very  much  afraid  that  if  your  friend,  Mr.  Romanes, 
heard  us  treat  his  strongest  of  the  strong  arguments  in  favor  of  evo- 
lution with  fco  little  ceremony,  he  would  count  us  among  those  who 
have  not  received  a  special  training— which,  in  good  English,  means 
who  are  too  intelligent  and  too  careful  not  to  believe  on  trust,  and 
with  their  eyes  shut,  whatever  modern  scientists  (?)are  pleased  to  im- 
pose on  the  credulity  of  their  disciples." 


94 
SIXTEENTH  ARTICLE. 

ARE  RUDIMENTARY  ORGAXS  ANY  HELP  TO  EVOLUTION? 

Doctor.— "Before  we  pass  to  the  other  sciences  which  evolution- 
ists call  to  their  aid  in  support  of  their  theory,  I  think  it  necessary 
to  occupy  this  present  conversation  in  disposing  of  the  argument 
which  our  friends  draw  from  the  existence  of  rudimentary  organs.' 

George. — "This  seems  tu  be  the  place  for  it,  aa  being  very  much 
akin  to  the  subject  which  occupied  our  attention  in  cur  last  meeting 
—that  of  embryology." 

Adele.— "I  am  satiefied  to  locate  ihe  subject  anywhere,  if  you  will 
be  so  kind  as  to  esplain  what  is  meant  by  rudimentary  organs." 

George — ."By  such  organs  evolutionists  mean  those  organs  observed 
in  the  embryos  of  many  animals.which  either  disappear  upon  the  growth 
of  the  animal  or  remsin  undeveloped,  and  are  therefore  considered 
by  them  perfectly  useless." 

Adele. — "As  for  instance  ?" 

George. — "As  for  instance  the  examples  given  by  Darwin  and  his 
fanatical  disciple,  Haeckel.  'The  boa  constrictor,'  says  the  former, 
'has  rudiments  of  hind  limbs.'  " 

Adele. — "Pray,  what  is  abna  constrictor?" 

George.— "The  boa  constrictor  is  one  of  the  largest  specimens  of 
serpents,  attaining,  when  fully  developed,  the  length  of  thirty-five 
feet.  It  is  so  called  from  the  Latin  verb  cundnngere,  to  crush,  to  press, 
because  this  animal,  on  account  of  its  great  muscular  power,  is  en- 
abled to  crush  the  largest  animals  in  its  folds." 

Adele — "Thanks.     I  suppose  it  is  a^so  poisonous." 

George. — "No,  luckily,  it  is  perfectly  harmless.  'What  can  be 
more  curious,'  continues  Darwin,  'than  the  preser:ce  of  teeth  in  foetal 
(or  embryologic)  whales,  which,  when  grown  up,  have  not  a  tooth  in 
their  heads;  or  the  teeth  which  nevercutthroughthegumsoftheupper 
jaws  of  the  unborn  «alves?  It  is  an  important  fact-that  rudimentary 
organs,  such  as  teeth  in  the  upper  jaws  of  whales  and  ruminants,  can 
often  be  detected  in  the  embryo,  but  afterwards  wholly  disappear.  The 
calf,  for  instance, has  inherited  teeth,  which  never  cut  through  the  gums 
of  the  upper  jaw,  from  an  early  progenitor  having  well  developed 
teeth.'  (Darwin,  'Origin  of  the  Species.')  'In  the  embryos,'  says 
Haeckle,  'of  many  ruminating  animals,  among  others  our  own  com- 
mon cattle,  fore  teeth,  or  incisors,  are  placed  in  the  mid-bone  of  the 
upper  jaw,  v/hich  never  fully  develop,  and  therefore  serve  no  pur- 
pose.'    ('History  of  the  Creation.')" 

Doctor. — "Other  examples  are  quoted,  as  for  instance,  among 
birds  maybementioa^'d  the  ostrich,  which  is  found  in  Africa,  iu  At>ia, 
and  iu  India,  beyond  the  Gauges,  and  which  is  over  eight   feyt  high, 


95 

has  wings  with  long,  soft,  undulating  feathers,  of  no  use  for  flying;  the 
cassowary,  a  large,  long-legged  bird  of  the  same  family,  inhabiting  the 
island  of  Java ;  its  wings,  armed  with  strong  spines  for  combat  or 
defence,  are  shorter  than  those  of  the  ostrich.  In  both  these  animals, 
then,  the  wings  are  rudimentary.  Among  such  organs  are  also  men- 
tioned the  eyes,  which  are  found  very  well  developed  in  some  ani- 
mals, because  they  are  covered  with  a  thick  and  opaque  membrane. 
Many  species  of  moles,  blind  rats,  serpents,  fishes  and  beetles  which 
live  under  ground,  or  in  the  depth  of  the  sea,  are  furnished  with  such 
eyes,  which  f  re  of  no  use  to  them.  Finally,  we  may  mention  the  im- 
perfect breasts  in  all  the  male  individuals  of  the  mammalia,  and  the 
hair  in  mankind,  both  of  which  are  rudimentary,  and  of  no  use 
whatever." 

Adele. — "I  think  I  now  understand  perfectly  what  is  meant  by 
rudimentary  organs,  but  I  cannot  see  what  they  have  got  to  do  with 
the  theory  of  evolution.  How  does  it  help  evolution  because  the  calf 
has  the  beginning  of  teeth  which  never  cut  through  the  gums,  or  be- 
cause the  mole  and  the  beetle  have  eyes  and  cannot  see,  or  because 
Mr.  George  here  has  beard  which  is  rather  a  trouble  to  him  than  an 
advantage  ?" 

Doctor. — "Evolutionists  insist  that  the  existence  of  such  rudi- 
mental  imperfect  organs  cannot  be  explained,  except  on  the  theory  of 
evolution." 

Adele.— "How  ?" 

Doctor. — "The  existence  of  a  certain  organ  in  an  animal  or  plant 
may  be  accounted  for  by  a  twofold  hypothesis:  either  that  of  design,  or 
that  of  inheritance  and  descent.  Let  us  take  the  eye  as  an  example. 
Say  all  mammalia  have  eyes.  Well,  we  may  ask,  "Why  is  the  eye  found 
in  all  mammalia,  and  what  is  it  intended  for?  You  may  answer  in 
two  ways  1st,  the  Creator  intended  that  all  such  animals  should  bo 
able  to  perceive  all  the  external  objects  surrounding  them,  and  it  was 
for  that  reason  that  He  endowed  all  of  them  with  the  organ  of  vision. 
The  eye,  then,  was  designed  by  the  Creator  to  enable  its  possessors  to 
see.  The  second  ".nswer  is :  the  organ  of  vision  was  neither  designed 
nor  created,  it  was  developed  in  proportion,  as  animals  found  out  how 
useful  the  organ  of  vision  might  be,  and  strove  after  some  such  con- 
trivance, and  succeeded  after  many  an  eflFort  and  struggle  in  developing 
the  eye  in  its  greatest  perfection.  Now,  evolutionists  contend  f  bat  the 
first  hypothesis,  that  is,  the  supposition  of  a  special  creation  of  organs 
with  a  view  to  attain  a  certain  definite  object,  cmnot  account  for  the 
existence  of  rudimentary  organs  because,  as  they  are  useless  and  of  no 
possible  advantage,  they  certainly  cannot  have  been  especially  de- 
signed for  anything ;  whereas  the  second  hypothesis  fully  accounts 
for  their  existence.    Such  organs  which  are  found  rudimentary  in 


certain  animals  must  have  existed  in  their  full  perfection  in  the 
ancestors  of  these  animals;  by  degrees,  for  want  of  use,  they  became 
atrophied  and  shrunk  up,  and  appear  now  in  the  present  state,  such 
as  they  have  inherited.  George,  let  us  have  the  confirmation  of  the 
statement  I  have  made  by  the  words  of  eomo  evolutionist." 

George — "I  will  give  you  the  words  of  Praf.  Romanes  in  his  work 
on  evolution:  'Throughout  the  animal  and  vegetable  kingdoms  we 
constantly  meet  with  organs  which,  in  other  and  allied  kind  of  animals 
and  plants,  are  of  large  size  and  fuHCtional  utility.  Thus,  for  instance, 
the  unborn  calf  has  rudimentary  teeth  which  are  never  destired  to 
cut  the  gums.  The  question  therefore  is  how  are  Ihey  to  be  accounted 
for?  Of  course,  the  theory  of  descent,  with  adaptive  modification,  has 
a  delightfully  simple  answer,  viz.,  that  when,  from  changed  condi- 
tions of  life,  an  organ  which  was  previously  useful  becomes  useless, 
natural  selection,  combined  with  disuse  and  so-called  economy  of 
growth,  will  cause  it  to  dwindle  till  it  becomes  a  rudiment.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  theory  of  special  creation  can  only  maintain  that  the 
rudiments  are  formed  for  the  sake  of  adhering  to  an  ideal  type.' 
(Page  11.)" 

Doctor. — "We  must  now  examine  this  new  argument,  of  vf  ry  great 
importance  in  the  opinion  of  the  evolutionists ;  and  we  will  put  two 
questions  :  Ist.  Does  the  explanation  of  the  evolutionists  leally  account 
for  rudimentary  organs  ?  2d.  What  is  the  true  and  satisfactory  ex- 
planation ?  With  regard  to  the  first  inquiry  I  may  remark,  in  the 
first  place,  that  the  evolutionist's  explanation  runs  counter  to  the 
most  fundamental  principle  of  evolution.  What  is  the  fundamental 
principle  of  all  systems  of  transformation  ?  A  continual  progress  from 
the  minimum  form  of  life  to  higher  and  better  forms ;  a  con- 
tinual advance  from  the  simple  to  the  complex  ;  a  going  upward  in 
the  scale  of  being.  I  need  not  quote  many  passages  to  prove,  what 
is  notorious  to  all,  that  the  best  and  greatest  among  transformists  are 
unanimous  in  maintaining  that  the  foundation  principle  of  evolution 
lies  in  a  transition, from  the  crude  to  the  finished;  from  the  im- 
perfect to  the  perfect ;  from  the  lowly  organic  beings  to  the  higher 
grades  of  organism  ;  from  indefinite  and  vague  forms  to  the  definite; 
from  the  simple  structure  to  the  most  complex  arrangement  of  parts. 
What,  then,  must  be  the  evident  conclusion  of  such  theory  ?  Why, 
that  it  can  admit  of  no  such  a  thing  as  going  backward  or  dov^nward  ; 
that  retrogression  or  deterioration  in  the  system  is  absolutely  out  of 
question." 

George. — '"A  natural  selection,'  says  Darwin,  'works  solely  for  the 
good  of  each  being;  all  corporeal  and  mental  endowments  will  tend 
to  progress  towards  perfection'  ('Origin  of  the  Species,'  page  428).  And 
again  :    'The  continued  production  of  new  forms,  which  implies  that 


97 

each  new  variety  has  some  advantages  over  others,  almost  inevitably 
leads  to  the  extermination  of  older  and  less  improved  forr\s'  ('Ani- 
mals and  Plants,'  p.  18)." 

Doctor. — "The  consequence,  then,  of  all  this  is,  that  rudimentary 
orcjans  cannot  be  explained  by  evolution,  because  the  latter  is  a  con- 
tinual progress,  an  advance,  a  going  ahead;  the  other  is  a  backward 
movement.  What  is  a  rudimentary  organ?  An  aborted  and  atro- 
phied organ  received  from  ancestral  species  which  had  it  in  perfect 
condition.  Then  such  an  organ  proclaims  a  failure,  a  retrogression ; 
it  is  an  evident  sign  of  decay,  and,  as  such,  contrary  to  all  principle  of 
evolution.  Take,  for  instance,  the  boa  constrictor,  which,  according 
to  Darwin,  once  had  legs  in  a  perfect  condition,  and  by  evolution  the 
species  finally  lost  its  legs,  leaving  the  atrophied  and  shrunken  leg 
bones  in  the  body  beneath  the  skin,  and  ever  i-'mce  the  poor  boa  has 
been  obliged  to  drag  its  ponderous  form  along  the  ground,  by  the 
most  un  mechanical  and  un philosophical  class  of  movements  known  in 
the  animal  kingdom." 

Adele. — "Poor  fellow ;  it  would  have  been  better  for  him  if  he  had 
never  been  mixed  up  with  evolution." 

Doctor. — "It  is  asking  too  much,  on  the  part  of  evolutionists,  from 
their  readers  to  bolieve  that,  according  to  this  theory,  the  boa  con- 
staictor  must  have  travelled  through  endless  ages  and  numberless 
successive  modifications  and  changes  from  legless  fish  or  mollusk  till 
it  possessed  the  quadruped's  advantage  of  legs  and  feet,  and,  when  it 
had  reached  such  a  convenient  state,  to  put  him  through  another 
number  of  efforts  and  endeavors,  through  another  countless  mass  of 
spontaneous  variations,  for  the  purpose  of  losing  those  useful  imple- 
ments as  legs  and  feet,  and  for  no  other  obj  ct  under  heaven  except 
to  leave  little  bones  under  the  skin,  and  to  furnish  evolutionists  with 
an  argument  from  rudimentary  organs.  Say  tbe  same  of  the  teeth  in 
the  embryos  of  whales,  which,  when  grown  up,  have  not  a  tooth  in 
their  heads;  or  of  the  teeth  which  never  cut  through  the  gums  in  the 
upper  jaw  of  unborn  calves.  The  ancestors  of  both  must  have  gone 
through  endless  efforts  to  attain  such  useful  instruments  as  teeth,  and 
when  they  had  reached  the  climax  and  the  desired  goal,  be  forced  to 
go  back  through  ages  interminable  till  those  teeth  got  to  be  atrophied 
and  shrunken,  to  be  transmitted  in  that  useless  and  unprofitable 
state." 

Adele. — "It  is  rather  hard,  I  must  confess,  for  those  poor  beasts. 
But  what  is  the  reason  which  caused  those  organs  to  become  atrophied 
or  shrunken  ?" 

George. — "Why,  on  account  of  the  changed  conditions  of  life,  those 
organs  had  become  useless." 

Doctor. — "Why,  in  most  of  the  cases  they  quote,  those  organs 


98 

would  be  of  the  greatest  use  to  the  animals.  If  the  cow,  for  instance, 
or  the  bovine  genus,  ever  had  upper  incisors,  what  could  possibly  have 
caused  their  loss  ?  Not,  certainly,  the  supposition  of  such  incisors  hav- 
ing become  useless ;  for  the  absence  of  such  useful  instruments  has 
brought  about  the  death  of  many  a  bovine  animal  by  being  unable 
thereby  to  bite  ofif  heavy  twigs  in  browsing,  to  gnaw  the  bark  from  sap- 
lings, or  to  crop  the  stunted  grass,  which  a  goat  with  full  incisors  would 
grow  fat  upon.  Such  incisors,  then,  if  they  ever  existed,  could  never 
have  been  atrophied  or  lost  for  want  of  opportunity  to  use  them." 

Adele. — "I  perceive,  clearly,  that  the  reason  alleged  fails  to  account 
for  the  atrophy  of  the  organs,  as  it  is  clear  that  those  organs  could  have 
had  frequent  exercise." 

Doctor. — "Then  the  explanation  does  not  account  for  the  exis- 
tence of  organs  in  some  species  in  a  rudimental  state,  whereas  they  are 
to  be  found  at  the  present  time  in- full  development  in  the  immediate 
ancestors  of  such  species.  Take  man,  for  instance.  He  is  the  lineal 
descendant  of  the  ape.  The  ape  is  covered  all  over  with  hair  in  its 
utmost  perfection,  and  which  is  of  the  greatest  use  and  advantage  to  it. 
Man  has  nothing  but  rudimentary  hair.  The  ancestor  keeps  its  cover- 
ing whole  and  perfect ;  man  does  not.  'How  is  it  man,'  says  Darwin^ 
'differs  conspicuously  from  all  other  primates  in  being  almost  naked — 
but  a  few  short  straggling  hairs  over  the  greater  part  of  the  body  in 
the  man,  and  a  fine  down  on  the  part  of  the  woman  ?  There  can  be 
little  doubt  that  the  hairs,  then,  scattered  over  the  body,  are  rudiments 
of  the  uniform  hairy  coat  of  the  lower  animals.'  ('Descent  of  Man,' 
p.  10).  Well,  how  does  he  explain  such  rudimentary  hairs  in  man  ? 
Certainly  not  by  descent  or  inheritance,  as  man's  ancestors,  according 
to  him,  have  a  uniform  hair  coat." 

George. — "He  has  attempted  a  certain  explanation." 

Adele. — "Well,  let  us  have  it." 

George. — "'I  am  inclined  to  believe,'  says  Darwin,  'that  man,  or 
rather  primarily  woman,  became  divested  of  hair  for  ornamental  pur- 
poses, and,  according  to  this  belief,  it  is  not  surprising  that  man  should 
difJer  so  great  in  hairiness  from  all  his  lower  brethren.'  ('Descent  of 
Man,'  page  143.)" 

Adele. — "It  is  astonishing  to  me  that  none  of  the  young  misses  of 
the  genus  ourang-outang  or  gorilla  never  had  so  much  vanity  or 
coquetry  as  to  become  divested  of  hair  for  ornamental  purposes.  The 
young  gents  of  that  tribe  must  rather  like  hair  very  much." 

Doctor. — "Well,  everybody  having  received  that  explanation  with 
an  explosion  of  laughter,  some  of  Darwin's  disciples  took  up  the  cudgel 
for  him  and  volunteered  other  explanations.  Professor  Claparede 
{'Revue  des  cours  Scientific',  vol.  8,  p.  570)  offered  a  better  one.  Eead  it, 
George." 


George. — "Having  premised  that  man  perhaps  appeared  first  in 
pome  temperate  and  dry  region,  and  those  among  men  who  spread 
themselves  north  and  south  may  have  found  it  necessary  to  protect 
their  shoulders  from  the  cold  or  the  sun  with  the  hide  of  an  animal, 
he  goes  on  to  say,  'and  who  knows  but  that  the  continual  friction  of 
ihe  covering  upon  this  part  of  the  body  during  a  long  series  of 
^venerations  may  not  have  ended  in  relative  rarity  of  hair  upon  the 
human  back  ?'" 

Doctor.— "  Besides    the    ludicrousness    of    the  explanation,    the 

absurdity  of  it  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  no  covering  or  friction  will 

deprive  man's  back  now  of  whatever  rudimental  hair  may  have  been 

ieft  upon  it." 

Adele.— "We  cannot  be  expected  to  agree  with  Professor  Claparede.' 

George. — "Well,  there  is  a  better  explanation  suggested  by  Profes- 
sor Grant-Allen.  'Our  ancestors,'  he  says  'half  human,  and  in  the  way 
of  evolution,  acquired  the  habit  of  walking  erect  and  of  lying  on  theii 
back,  in  opposition  to  all  other  mammals.  It  was  thus  that  they  lost, 
little  by  little,  the  hair  on  the  back  and  shoulders,  and  of  those  parte 
which  came  in  contact  with  the  ground.'  {'Revue  Scient 'ft que,' J ann- 
ary  '86,  page  719.)  What  are  you  laughing  at  so  heartily,  Miss 
Adele  ?" 

Adplp  — "Why.  at  Professor  Grant- Allen  and  his  explanation.  It 
brought  forcibly  before  my  mind  the  fable  of  the  man  between  twv 
qg(rs  by  La  Fontaine,  and  I  could  not  repress  my  risibility.  I  have  no 
doubt  Professor  Grant- Allen,  in  the  moments  of  relaxation  from  his 
ardcus  scientific  studies,  must  have  read  'La  Fontaine'  for  amuse- 
ment, and  that  eame  fable  must  have,  unconsciously  to  himself, 
suggested  the  explanation." 

Doctor. — "You  are  a  sad  girl,  Adele." 

George. — "And  have  no  fear  of  scientists  or  science  before  your 
eyes.    But  let  us  have  the  fable." 

Adele. — "A  man  of  middle  age,  whose  hair 

Was  bordering  on  the  gray. 
Began  to  turn  his  thought  and  care 

The  matrimonial  way. 
Two  wido  ws  chiefly  gained  his  heart ; 
The  one  yet  greso,  the  otcer  more  nj*tuTe, 
Who  found,  for  nature's  wane  in  art,  ?  care. 

These  dames  amidst  their  joking,  and  carwaing 
The  man  they  longed  to  wed, 

Would  sometwues  set  ihcinaelves  to  dressing 
His  parti  colored  h  ad. 
Each  aiming  to  assimilate 
Her  lover  to  her  own  estate; 


100 

The  older  piecemeal  stole 

The  black  hair  from  his  poll, 

While  eke  with  fingers  light 

The  young  one  stole  the  white. 

Between  them  both,  as  if  by  scald, 

His  head  was  changed  from  gray  to  bald. 

— 'ia  Fontaine,^  translated  by  E.  Wright, 

And  that  certainly  would  better  account  for  the  poor  man  loBing  his 
hair,  no  matter  of  what  color,  than  the  reason  given  by  Professor 
Grant  for  the  whole  of  mankind,  male  and  female,  being  minus  their 
timely  honored  ancestral  covering." 

Doctor.— "Take  again  the  example  of  the  tail.  Man's  ancestors 
are  furnished  with  a  long,  decent,  respectable  tail,  Man,  according  to 
evolutionists,  has  but  the  very  minimum  of  the  rudiments  of  that 
organ.  How  do  they  explain  such  a  thing,  except  by  that  ridiculous 
suggestion  that  he  has  worn  it  out  gradually  by  sitting  down  upon 
it?" 

Adele. — "Is  this  science  or  romance,  uncle  ?" 

Doctor. — "It  is  called  science  in  the  nineteenth  century ;  a  few 
centuries  back  they  would  have  gotten  hold  of  such  scientists  and  shut 
them  up  in  a  maa-house." 

George. — "But  what  is  the  real  explanation  for  such  rudimental 
organs  ?" 

Doctor. — "In  the  first  place,  I  want  to  remark  that  it  is  false  to 
suppose  that  every  organ  must  be  of  some  use  and  advantage  to  the 
individual  which  possesses  i1,  in  the  restricted  sense  that  it  must  serve 
it  for  some  function  or  other.  It  must  certainly  have  been  intended 
for  some  end,  but  not  necessarily  and  always  for  the  advantage  of  the 
individual,  but  to  follow  up  the  type  of  the  species ;  or,  by  variety,  to 
add  to  the  beauty  and  the  adornment  of  the  individual  and  of  the 
universe.  If  we  take  this  into  consideration,  everything  can  be  ex- 
plained upon  theory  from  design.  An  organ  in  a  rudimental  state 
may  be  of  no  real  necessity  or  use  to  the  individual,  but  may  serve  to 
express  fully  and  completely  the  type  of  the  species,  or  it  may  add  to 
the  beauty  and  ornamenting  of  the  individual,  and  therefore  of  the 
universe,  Darwin  partly  admits  this  explanation.  'The  foregoing 
remarks  lead  me  to  say  a  few  words  on  the  protest  lately  made  by 
some  naturalists  against  the  utilitarian  doctrine,  that  every  detail  of 
structure  has  been  produced  for  the  good  of  its  possessor.  They 
believe  that  many  structures  have  been  created  for  the  sake  of  beauty 
to  delight  man  or  the  Creator,  or  for  the  sake  of  mere  variety— a  view 
already  discussed.  Such  doctrines,  if  true,  would  be  absolutely  fatal 
to  my  theory.  I  fully  admit  that  many  structures  are  now  of  no 
direct  use  to  their  possessors,  and  may  never  have  been  of  any  use  to 


101 

their  progenitois,  but  this  does  not  prove  that  they  were  formed  solely 
for  beauty  or  variety'  ('Origin  of  Species,'  p.  89)." 

Adele. — ''Dear  me!  these  gigantic  intellects  can  never  string  to- 
gether a  dozen  words  without  contradicting  themselves.  Here  is  the 
patriarch  of  evolutionism  admitting  that  some  organs  are  of  no  use,  and 
may  never  have  been  of  any  use  to  their  possessors  and  to  their  pro- 
genitor?, and  then  denies  that  they  were  made  for  beauty  or  variety. 
I  humbly  submit  that  when  a  thing  is  of  no  use  to  anybody,  what  is 
left  to  it  but  to  be  ornamental  ?" 

Doctor. — "Let  us  then  conclude :  the  uniformity  of  the  plan 
followed  by  the  Creator  in  His  works  can  easily  explain  the  presence  of 
rudimentary  organs  in  some  animals.  God  has  thus  impressed  upon 
such  as  these  the  signs  of  relationship  with  their  kind.  'Instead  of 
being  an  argument  in  favor  of  evolution,'  says  Agassiz — 'the  rudimental 
eye  discovered  by  Doctor  J.  Wyman  in  the  blind  fish  of  the  Mammoth 
Cave — does  it  not  prove  on  the  contrary  that  this  animal,  like  all 
others,  has  been  created  with  all 'its  particular  characters  by  the  fiat 
of  the  Almighty,  and  that  this  rudiment  of  the  eye  has  been  be- 
queathed to  it  as  a  memorial  of  a  general  plan  of  structure  upon 
which  has  been  constructed  the  great  type  to  which  it  belongs  ?' 
('Classification  of  Species,'  p.  20)." 


SEVENTEENTH  ARTICLE. 

ARE  THE  REASONS  DRAWN  FROM  CLASSIFICATION,  MORPHOLOGY,  ANATOMY, 
AND  PATHOLOGY  IN  FAVOR  OF  ORGANIC  EVOLUTION  OF  ANY  REAL 
VALUE  ? 

Doctor. — "The  argument  drawn  from  difierent  sciences  will 
occupy  our  present  and  other  conversations.  These  are :  Classifica- 
tion, Morphology,  Anatomy,  and  Pathology,  An  argument  and  a 
proof  is  endeavored  to  be  derived  from  each  of  these  sciences,  which, 
as  they  all  amount  to  the  same  thing  andcometothesameconclusion, 
we  will  treat  of  and  discuss  in  their  combined  logical  evidence. 
Pleas^\  George,  give  us  the  evolutionists'  proof,  so-called,  from  classifi- 
cation V 

George. — "I  will  answer  in  the  words  of  Romanes:  'All  scientists, 
who  have  directed  their  study  upon  natural  history,  have  classified  all 
living  beings  according  to  the  natural  affinities  which  are  observed 
among  them.  Their  system  Oi  classification  may  be  compared  to  a 
tree  in  which  a  short  trunk  may  be  taken,  as  representing  the  lowest 
organism,  which  cannot  properly  be  called  either  plant  or  animal. 
The  bhort  trunk  is  soon  separated  into  two  large  trunks,  one  repre- 


102 

eenting  the  vegetable,  the  other  the  animal  kingdom.  Each  of  these 
trunks  then  gives  us  large  branches,  signifying  classes,  and  these  give 
oflF smaller  but  more  numerous  branches, -which  signify  genera,  and 
finally  into  leaves  which  may  be  taken  to  represent  species.  In  such 
a  representative  tree  of  life,  the  height  of  any  branch  from  the  ground 
may  be  taken  to  indicate  the  grade  of  organization,  which  the  leaves  or 
species  present.  Now,  the  framing  of  this  natural  classification  has 
been  the  work  of  naturalists  for  centuries  past ;  and  although  they  did 
not  know  what  they  were  doing,  it  is  now  evident  to  evolutionists  they 
were  tracing  the  lines  of  genetic  relationship.'" 

Adele. — "Let  me  see  if  I  understand  the  argument.  Evolutionists 
say,  naturalists  for  ages  past  have  classified  plants  and  animals  as  two 
large  trunks,  branching  off  from  a  much  shorter  but  larger  trunk, 
representing  some  being  neither  plant  nor  animal.  Those  two  trunks, 
that  is,  the  vegetable  and  animal  kingdom,  shoot  off  branches  and 
leaves  which  represent  genera  and  species  of  plants  and  animals. 
The  distance  of  a  branch  from  the  ground  is  an  index  of  its  organic 
grade  of  perfection.  Now,  of  course,  if  such  classification  was  made 
according  to  nature  and  grounded  upon  observation,  nothing  better 
could  have  been  done  in  favor  of  evolution,  as  it  represents  all  living 
being,  plants  and  animals  of  every  genus  and  species,  as  springing  up 
from  the  lowest  possible  germ  of  life.     Is  that  the  argument  ?" 

Doctor. — Certainly,  Adele,  and  you  have  very  cleverly  caught  it. 
As  I  intend  to  consider  the  whole  argument  as  resulting  from  all  the 
four  sciences  we  have  mentioned.  I  will  not  say  much  now  except  to 
observe  that  the  classification  as  described  by  Mr.  Romanes  is  cobweb 
spun  out  of  his  fertile  and  busy  brain,  a  sheer  invention  of  his  own, 
for  which  he  can  claim  undivided  parentage.  Why,  if  naturalists 
have  represented  all  living  beings,  plants  and  animals,  under  the 
image  of  tree,  whose  trunk  branches  off  into  minor  trunks,  and 
branches  and  leaves  representing  genera  and  species,  they  never 
dreamt  to  signify  that  all  those  genera  and  species  sprang  up  by  genera- 
tion or  evolution  from  one  real  form  of  life,  neither  belonging  to  the 
vegetable  nor  to  the  animal  kingdom.  If  they  made  use  of  the  image 
of  a  tree,  with  trunk,  branches  and  leaves,  they  merely  and  simply 
understood  it  in  a  figurative  sense." 

Adele. — "In  such  case  the  argument  of  evolutionists  falls  down 
as  a  house  of  cards." 

Doctor. — "Neither  more  nor  less.  Let  them  bring  forward,  if  they 
can,  some  celebrated  naturalist,  such  as  Linn£eus,  Bufibn,  Cuvier,  who 
uses  it  in  the  sense  they  take  it,  that  is,  in  any  other  sense  than  as  a 
figure  or  an  image,  and  then  we  shall  discuss  this  argument  seriously. 
Pass  on  to  the  other  sciences,  George." 

George. — "Next  comes  morphology  or  science  of  form  of  structure. 


103 

The  argument  they  draw  from  this  Bcience  is  that  from  the  lower 
tribes  of  mammals  toward  the  higher  organisms,  there  is  8uch  a 
marked  and  regular  gradation,  together  with  such  a  general  repeni- 
blance  and  such  gradual  passage  from  one  to  another,  especially  in 
the  genera  and  species  and  races  of  those  beings,  which  are  most  re- 
lated to  each  other  as  to  strike  one  most  forcibly,  and  to  leave  no 
alternative  to  account  for  it  than  the  supposition  that  they  are  all 
descended  from  one  prototype  in  nature.  How  otherwise  account  for 
it?" 

Adele.— "So  you  say  that  the  regular  and  gradual  ascension  from 
the  lowest  animals  to  the  highest,  all  resembling  each  other,  implies  a 
common  descendance  from  one  single  parent?" 

Doctor. — "So  evolutionists  claim,  at  least,  Adele.  Let  us  have  a 
word  about  comparative  anatomy  and  pathology,  George." 

George. — "Morphology  rather  regards  the  form  of  the  structure  of 
living  bodies ;  anatomy  treats  of  the  framework  of  the  organs  of  the 
same.  Now,  as  there  is  a  gradual  ascent  from  the  lower  organisms  of 
living  bodies  up  to  the  higher,  and  a  general  and  gradual  resemblance 
in  their  formation  and  structure,  so  there  is  in  the  framework,  in  the 
bones  of  the  same;  and  this,  of  course,  must  lead  us  to  the  same  con- 
clusion that  they  must  all  have  descended  from  a  common  parent. 
'The  similar  frame  work  of  bones  in  the  hand  of  man,'  says  Darwin, 
'the  wing  of  a  bat,  the  fin  of  a  porpoise,  and  the  leg  of  a  horse  and  in- 
numerable other  facts,  at  once  explain  themselves  on  the  theory  of 
descent  with  slow  and  slight  and  successive  modifications.'  Pathology, 
which  is  the  science  of  diseases,  leads  to  the  same  conclusion,  as  it  re- 
presents all  animals  subject  more  or  less  to  the  same  diseases,  which 
of  course  could  not  happen  unless  thpy  were  endowed  with  similar 
organs  and  pointed  to  the  same  common  descent." 

Adele.— "Very  good.  I  see  the  drift  of  the  argument  furnished 
by  all  these  sciences,  classification,  morphology,  comparative  ana- 
tomy, and  pathology.  They  all  go  to  show  that  in  all  living  beings, 
especially  in  animals,  from  the  lowest  possible  to  the  highest  known 
to  U8,  there  is  a  gradual  successive  atcending  upwards,  one  hardly 
being  distinguished  from  the  other  and  almost  insensibly  and  imper- 
ceptibly blending  iuto  the  other  ;  and  that  they  all  exhibit  in  the  forms 
of  their  organs  and  their  structure,  in  the  framework  of  such  organs,  as 
the  whole  system  of  bones,  in  the  very  (Useases  and  failing  of  their 
organs  and  their  functions  a.  resemblance  so  great,  a  family  look  so 
forcible,  a  relationship  so  apparent,  that  the  only  way  to  account  for 
such  facts  is  the  supposition  that  all  came  from  a  common  source  and 
a  common  parent." 

George.— 'Bravo,  Miss  Adele.  What  a  magical  hand  you  have  in 
condensing  and  recapitulating  ?" 


104 

Adele.— "Nonsense.  Uncle,  how  are  we  to  meet  such  an  accumu- 
lation of  sciences  ?  Is  all  what  they  say  true  ?  Are  all  the  facts  really 
as  they  state  them  ?" 

Doctor. — "Pretty  much  so." 

Adele. — "Then  you  admit  the  facts  ?" 

Doctor. — ''We  admit  most  willingly  and  cheerfully  the  facts  of 
the  gradual  successive  and  ascending  resemblance  in  all  living  beings, 
particularly  animals,  in  the  form,  in  the  framework  of  the  structure 
of  their  organisms,  even  as  far  as  the  great  similarity  in  their  patholo- 
gical infirmities  and  evils." 

George. — "Tben  you  admit  the  consequence?" 

Doctor. — "What  consequence?" 

George. — "That  they  all  come  from  one  common  parent." 

Doctor. — "Most  decidedly  not." 

George. — "Then  how  do  you  get  over  the  facts?  How  do  you  ex- 
plain them  ?" 

Doctor. — "I  give  a  diflerent  explanation  of  those  facts  from  that 
of  the  evolutionists,  as  I  have  an  undoubted  right  so  to  do,  and  as  I 
trust  those  gentlemen  will  be  willing  to  concede." 

Adele. — "Then  how  is  tbe  question  to  be  decided  ?" 

Doctor. — "By  testing  each  respective  explanation  with  logic  and 
common  sense  and  find  out  which  of  them  will  stand  the  test.  We 
will  proceed  in  this  discussion  as  follows:  1st,  we  will  endeavor  to 
understand  the  explanation  I  adopt;  2dly,  we  will  examine  what 
evolutionists  have  got  to  say  again3t  it ;  in  the  third  place,  we  will  take 
the  evolutionists'  explanation,  and  investigate  whether  it  does  or  does 
not  explain  the  facts.  I  think  all  that  will  embrace  the  whole  ground, 
and  nothing  more  could  be  expected." 

George. — "And  I  must  confess  that  no  fairer  or  more  equitable 
method  could  be  desired." 

Doctor. — "Now  then  for  the  explanation  I  adopt.    It  is  called  the 
explanation  from  design." 
Adele.— "What  is  that?" 

Doctor.— "I  suppose,  as  we  proved  in  one  of  our  earliest  explana- 
tions, that  God  is  the  Creator  of  the  universe,  and  I  suppose  further, 
that  in  creating  the  universe  He  must  have  an  object  la  view,  because 
He  is  infinite  intelligence,  and  no  intelligence  which  acts  as  such 
can  do  so  without  a  knowledge  of  the  object  of  its  action.  What  can 
such  object  be  ?  None  other  thsin  the  manifestation  of  His  infinite 
nature  and  perfection,  or,  in  other  words,  none  other  than  that  of 
communicating  existence  and  perfection  to  others.  Do  you  under- 
stand, Adele  ?" 

Adele.— "You  say  that  the  Almighty  Creator,  bung  an  Infinite 
intelligence,  must  have  an  end  in  view  in  the  creation  of  the  univerde, 


105 

and  that  such  an  end  can  be  no  other  than  the  imaging  and  express- 
ing Himself  in  created  existences  and  perfections.  I  understand  that 
far;  but  why  can  He  have  no  other  end  in  view  ?" 

Doctor. — "Can  you  add  anything  to  the  Infinite,  or  take  anything 
away  from  Him  ?  Can  you  add  to  His  nature,  His  knowledge.  His 
wisdom.  His  goodness,  His  excellence?" 

Adele. — "Certainly  not,  or  He  would  not  be  infinite." 
Doctor.— "Then,  as  He  can  gain   nothing  by  creating,  that  act 
must  consist  and  have  for  its  object  to  bestow  being  and  perfection  to 
such  as  do  not  as  yet  possess  either." 
Adele. — "I  see." 

Doctor.— "Next,  God  in  creating  must  sketch  out  and  express 
Himself,  His  nature  and  perfection  in  what  He  efiects,  because  as  He 
is  the  source  of  all  being,  He  is  also,  necessarily,  the  model,  the  type, 
the  pattern  of  all  existences.  In  creating,  therefore,  He  imitates  and 
copies  Himself ;  but,  of  course,  you  understand  what  He  creates  must 
necessarily  be  finite,  and,  therefore,  infinitely  inferior  to  its  model." 

George.— "I  see  that  well  enough.  Created  means  to  be  depend- 
ent upon  another  for  its  existence ;  uncreated  and  infinite,  means  to 
be  self  existing;  therefore,  to  suppose  a  created  being  equal  to  the  in- 
finite, would  be  a  contradiction  in  terms,  as  it  would  mean  a  being 
made  by  another,  and  self- existing  at  the  same  time. 

Adele.— "Gentlemen,  I  don't  see  the  drift  of  your  explanation  yet, 
but  I  suppose  I  shall  by-and-by." 

Doctor.— "Certainly,  please  to  follow  me  a  moment  longer  and 
you  will  see  very  clearly  into  the  thing.  The  amount  of  being  which 
the  Creator  may  effect  being  obliged  to  be  finite,  and  infinitely  inferior 
to  God,  in  order  to  image  Him  and  His  perfections  as  well  as  possible, 
it  must  necessarily  be  subject  to  the  following  laws — the  law  of  variety, 
of  proportion  and  affinity,  and  the  law  of  unity." 
Adele. —  'I  can't  say  I  understand  very  well." 
George. — "Nor  I." 

Doctor.— "The  first  law  which  God  must  follow  in   creating  is  to 
produce  not  one  class  or  kind  of  creatures,  but  a  variety  of  classes,  of 
kinds  and  individuals.    You  understand  that  much  ?" 
Adele.— "Certainly ;  but  why  ?" 

Doctor. — "Because  what  He  creates  is  infinitely  inferior  to  the 
model.  Look  into  yourself,  Adele,  when  you  try  to  express  an  idea. 
The  idea  in  your  mind  is  something  immaterial,  intelligible  and  spirit- 
ual. You  want  to  express  it  by  material  sounds.  If  the  sound  were 
cf  the  same  immaterial  nature  with  the  idea,  one  sound  would  fully 
and  completely  express  the  idea,  in  all  cases  and  under  all  circum- 
stances; but,  as  they  are  inferior  in  nature  and  material,  inmost  cases, 
you  must  have  a  variety  of  sounds  to  express  one  simple  idea.    So  it 


106 

is  with  creation.  The  ideal  is  spiritual  and  immaterial — inOnite  in 
nature.  One  inferior  being,  therefore,  or  one  class  of  them,  could 
never  express  that  idea.  Hence  the  necessity  of  creating  a  variety  of 
class  and  of  kinds  of  beings." 

Adele. — "I  understand  perfectly,  now,  as  a  musician,  for  instance, 
who  wants  to  express  a  feeling  of  tenderness  has  to  make  use  of  vari- 
ous sounds  to  stamp  that  spiritual  feeling  in  his  composition,  and  to 
arouse  it  in  the  listeners ;  so  God,  having  to  mirror  his  immaterial 
nature  and  perfection  in  the  universe  must  make  use  of  a  variety  of 
creatures  and  classes  of  them." 

Doctor. — '"Very  good.  Then  you  will  easily  perceive  the  other 
laws,  that  of  unity,  for  instance ;  because,  as  that  variety  is  needed  to 
express  one  ideal,  all  classes  of  being  must  all  conspire  to  ultimately 
convey  that  idea  of  unity.  And  to  attain  this  God  makes  use  of  the 
law  of  proportion  and  aflfinity,  which  means  that,  between  one  class  of 
creatures  and  another,  though  distinct  by  the  law  of  variety,  there 
must  not  be  a  difference  so  great  as  to  render  impossible  the  unity, 
but  there  must  be  a  certain  resemblance  or  similitude  between  them 
so  as  to  harmonize  them  in  view  of  the  general  end.  The  conclusion 
of  all  this  is  that  it  behooved  God,  in  creating  the  uciverse,  to  efiecta 
variety  of  classes  of  creatures  to  express  His  infinite  perfections,  and 
to  put  such  a  general  softening  and  shadowing  in  the  varieties  of 
classes  as  to  enable  them  to  represent  a  whole  harmonic  universe, 
whilst  maintaining  the  specific  variety  of  each  class.  That  was  Gods 
design,  which  he  effected  by  creating  five  distinct  kingdoms  or  classes 
of  creatures,  the  mineral,  the  vegetable,  the  animal,  the  human  and 
the  purely  spiritual.  Under  each  of  these  he  created  an  immense 
number  of  species,  and  of  individuals  in  each  species.  What  I  claim 
is  that  every  one  of  those  kingdoms  required  a  distinct  creative  act, 
and  that  the  one  could  not  be  evolved  from  the  other.  For  instance : 
The  vegetable  or  living  world  could  not  be  evolved  from  the  mineral, 
nor  the  animal  or  sensitive  from  the  vegetable,  nor  the  human  kii  d 
from  the  animal,  nor  the  spiritual  world  from  the  human ;  otherwihe, 
the  variety  would  be  extinguished,  though  I  grant  that  God  having 
created  the  genus  of  each  kingdom,  may  ha*e  allowed  them  to  evolve 
within  their  sphere.  Again,  having  created  those  five  classes,  it  is  no 
wonder  that  they  should  present,  in  structural  form,  in  the  framework 
of  their  organism,  a  successive  and  gradual  ascension  and  resemblance, 
because  all  were  made  to  serve  and  to  express  and  to  mirror  the  same 
ideal  and  pattern." 

Adele.— "I  perceive  the  whole  thing  perfectly  and  I  am  eharm^ 
with  it.  What  was  the  necessity  of  having  five  distinct  kingdoms  in 
nature  ?  To  express  the  grandeur,  the  unlimited  superiority  of  the 
ideal  and  pattern  of  Creation— the  infinite  Creator.    Why  do  we  find 


107 

pu'-.h  gradual  insensible  similarity  in  all  those  kingdoms  rising  np 
from  the  lowest  to  the  highest?  Why  do  we  admire  such  family 
likeness  in  their  form  and  structure  and  even  in  their  ills  ?  Because, 
though  distinct  and  various,  they  are  so  fashioned  as  to  imitate  the 
unity  of  the  model." 

Doctor. — "Well,  that  is  what  is  called  the  explanation  from  de- 
sign. George,  what  have  evolutionists  to  object  to  this  explanation 
adopted  by  (dl  the  highest  and  best  geniuses  in  every  department  ef 
science,  until  Lanaarkand  Darwiu  and  Co.  invented  this  theory  of 
transformation  ?" 

George. — ''The  great  objection  they  urge  against  it  is  that  it  is  not 
a  scientific  explanation.  'Nothing  can  be  more  liopeiesc",'  says  Darwin, 
'than  to  attempt  t )  explain  this  similarity  of  pattern  in  nj embers  of 
the  same  class  by  utility  or  by  doctrine  of  final  causes.  On  the 
ordinary  view  of  independent  creation  of  each  being  we  can  only  SHy 
that  so  it  is,  that  it  has  pleased  the  Creator  to  construct  all  the  ani- 
mals and  plants  in  each  great  class  on  a  uniform  plan  ;  but  this  is  not 
a  scientific  explanation." 

Adele. — 'Will  you  be  so  obliging,  Mr.  George,  as  to  tell  me,  in 
your  usual  happy  and  lucid  language,  what  is  required  for  an  ex- 
planation to  bp  «'ie  tific  f  ' 

Doctor. — 'You  should  have  inquired  what,  according  to  evolution- 
ists, is  necessary  for  an  explanation  to  be  scientific,  for  in  that  case  he 
could  have  a  prompt  answer,  which  is:  That  any  nonsense,  no  matter 
bow  ludicrous  or  absurd,  provided  it  serves  to  banish  God's  action 
from  the  universe,  is  accepted  and  venerated  as  a  truly  scientific -ex- 
planation and  extolled  to  the  skies.  Say  anything  you  list  provided 
you  put  God  on  the  shelf  and  you  are  sure  to  be  a  great  scientist. 
Now,  li'Sten  to  Huxley's  answer  to  the  question.  It  is  twofold.  The 
one  is  that  an  explanation  is  scientific  when  the  thing  to  be  accounted 
for  is  explained  by  some  general  law  c  f  nature.  'A  phenomenon  is 
explained  when  it  is  shown  to  be  a  case  of  some  general  law  of  nature.' 
(Lay  Sermons,  p.  282,  Appleton,  76.)  Tlie  second  part  of  the 
answer  is  that  no  amount  of  evidence  which  we  are  capable  to  attain 
can  justify  us  to  maintain  that  anything  is  out  of  the  power  of  natural 
agents  or  ciuse.  'Let  us  a^k  ourselves  whether  any  amount  of  evi- 
dence which  the  nature  of  our  faculties  permits  us  to  attain,  can  justify 
us  in  asserting  that  any  phenomenon  is  out  of  reach  of  natural  causa- 
tion' (H.)" 

Adele. — "I  see,  then,  that  according  to  evolutionists,  no  explana- 
tion can  be  scientific  unless  it  excludes  God,  and  no  amount  of  evi- 
dence we  are  able  to  gather  can  justify  us  to  say  that  anything  can  be 
done  by  the  Almighty  and  not  brought  about  by  natural  forces.  But, 
uncle,  do  these  people  admit  that  God  was  wanted  at  all  to  create 


lOS 

matter  or  all  those  primitive  substances  of  which  the  universe  is  com- 
posed ?" 

George. — "Why  do  you  put  the  question,  Miss  Adele  ?" 

Adele. — "Because  it  seems  to  me  that  our  friends,  the  transform- 
ists,  are  in  a  sad  corner  again." 

George. — "Well,  suppose  I  answer  that  they  do  admit,  as  Darwin 
did  at  first,  that  the  materials  and  the  one  or  few  forms  of  life  out  of 
which  every  living  organism  is  evolved  were  created  by  God,  what 
then  ?" 

Adele. — "Why,  then,  by  their  leave  and  yours,  I  say  that  their  ex- 
planation of  the  existence  of  primitive  matter  and  primitive  living 
forms  is  not  scientific  because  it  calls  in  the  interference  of  an  agent 
out  of  the  sphere  of  nature." 

Doctor. — "You  have  hit  the  nail  on  the  head,  Adele.  Evolution- 
ists cannot  object  to  our  explanation  as  unscientific  without  decrying 
their  own  explanation,  if  they  admit  primitive  matter  and  living  forms 
to  have  been  created  by  God  Almitrhty,  or  must  fall  into  the  material 
pantheism  of  Haeckel,  Spencer,  Vogt  and  Buckner.  Listen  to  the 
latter's  words.  He  quotes  first  Darwin's  words  which  say :  'I  consider 
it  as  probable  that  all  organized  beings  which  have  ever  lived  upon 
earth,  are  all  descended  from  a  primitive  form  to  which  the  breath  of 
the  Creator  has  once  communicated  life.  But  this  conclusion  rests  on 
analogy  and  it  is  not  necessary  that  it  should  be  admitted  or  not.'  Upon 
those  words  Buckner  remarks :  'The  last  assertion  is  by  no  means 
rational  and  Professor  Brown,  Darwin's  translator  (into  German)  has 
justly  objected  to  it  in  a  postscript  after  his  translation,  as  being  defec- 
tive and  destructive  of  his  whole  theory.  For  if  we  must  recognize 
that  special  acts  of  creation  have  been  necessary  for  eight  or  ten  first 
original  couples,  why  not  accept  this  creation  also  for  all  other  beings, 
and  why  endeavor  to  explain  their  apparition  by  natural  causes?  Be- 
cause it  is  immaterial  to  a  philosopher  that  the  creative  act  be  pro- 
duced once  or  several  times  and  once  it  is  admitted,  the  miracle  is 
substituted  instead  of  the  natural  law.'  (Doctor  Bucker,  'Conferences 
on  the  Darwinian  Theory,'  First  Conference.)  Let  us  then  recapitu- 
late our  whole  argument.  Evolutionists  refuse  to  explain  the  facts  of 
similarity  of  all  living  beings  by  the  hypothesis  of  design  because  they 
contend  that  it  is  unscientific  and  introduces  the  miraculous  and  the 
supernatural  in  the  universe.  What  have  we  answered  to  that,  Adele  ?" 
Adele. — "That  if  they  admit  creation  at  all  to  explain  the  first 
primitive  forms  of  life  their  explanation  is  unscientific  as  introducing 
and  calling  in  the  interference  of  God  in  nature.  If  they  do  not  they 
have  the  existence  of  the  first  living  form,  whatever  it  may  be,  to  ac- 
count for,  and  they  can  only  do  so  by  accepting  the  gross  and  material 
pantheism  of  Spencer,  Haeckel,  Buckner,  Vogt,  and  the  like." 


109 
EIGHTEENTH  ARTICLE. 

"WHAT   IS   A   SCIENTIFIC    EXPLANATION? 

Doctor. — "In  our  last  conversation  we  reasoned  on  the  evolution- 
ists' definition  of  a  scientific  explanation>  letting  it  pass  for  the  time 
being,  aud  only  pointing  out  the  consequences  which  result  against 
their  own  system  from  such  a  definition.  I  want,  in  the  present  con- 
versation, t>)  thoroughly  and  completely  examine  it.  George,  did  it 
ever  strike  you  that  such  a  definition  is  the  very  sublimity  of  preten- 
sion and  af'sufdity?" 

George.— 'I  must  say  it  did  not.  Scientists  raise  such  clamor 
about  the  grft-tness,  the  solidity  of  their  pursuits,  the  wonderful  depth 
of  their  attainments,  the  sublime  privilege  of  understanding  their 
theories,  the  very  limited  mental  powers,  or  rather  imbecility,  of  those 
who  do  not  hold  them  fordemi  gods,  and  swear  on  their  word,  that  no 
matter  how  careful  a  man  may  be,  in  guarding  himself,  he  is  more  or 
less  influei  red  by  such  a  clamor  and  becomes  biased  in  their  favor 
in  spite  of  himself." 

Doctor. — "It  is  high  time  to  speak  the  truth  openly  and  loudly 
and  without  much  ceremony  or  glove-handling.  For  imbecility  of  true 
mental  vigo'^  and  intelligence,  only  equalled  by  an  overweaning  self- 
complacency  and  laudation,  commend  me  to  your  scientists.  You 
will  bear  n'e  out  when  we  have  examined  their  definition  of  a  scientific 
explanation.    What  is  it,  Adele?" 

Adele  — "  'A  phenomenon,'  says  Huxley,  'is  explained  when  it  is 
shown  to  l)e  a  case  of  some  general  law  of  nature.  And  no  evidence 
can  justify  us  in  asserting  that  any  phenomenon  is  out  of  the  reach  of 
natural  csu-j  ition.'  In  other  other  words,  no  explanation  is,  or  can  be 
called  scientific,  which  explains  and  accounts  for  a  thing  by  any  other 
cause  than  that  of  a  general  law  of  nature." 

Doctor. — "George,  do  you  see  the  extreme  pretension  of  such  a 
definition  ?"' 

George. — "I  begin  to  guess." 

Doctor. — "With  infinite  modesty  our  scientists  merely  suppose 
that  all  possible  human  knowledge  and  science  is  included  in  the 
physical  uuiverse,  and  that  beyond  that  we  neither  can,  nor  must  seek 
for  any  further  knowledge.  That  is  the  modest  claim  of  science.  The 
laws  of  the  physical  world  which  govern  all  bodies  inorganic  or  living 
are  aH  that  can  have  the  name  of  sc'ence.  Therefore,  that  far  you  can 
go  and  no  farther ;  if  you  seek  any  farther,  if  you  pretend  to  have  dis- 
covered or  heard  of  other  and  higher  principles,  higher  beings,  then 
you  are  no  longer  scientific,  you  are  out  of  the  pale  of  science.  You 
will  the  better  conceive  this  when  you  have  read  the  definition  of 
science  by  Spencer  and  Huxley  which  you  will  find  marked." 


110 

George. — "'What  is  science  ?'  aska  Spencer.  'Science  is  simply  a 
higher  development  of  comrnon  knowledge.'  ('First  Principles,' p.  IS). 
'Knowledge,'  says  Huxley,  'upon  many  subjects,  grows  to  be  more  and 
more  perfect,  and  when  it  bacomes  to  be  so  accurate  and  sure  that  it 
is  capable  of  being  proved  to  persons  of  suitable  intelligence,  it  is 
called  science.  The  science  of  any  subject  is  the  hiqhest  and  nnost  exact 
knowledge  upon  that  subject.'    ('Elementary  Physiology,'  p.  11.)" 

Doctor. — "The  knowledge  of  any  subject  which  has  become  so 
accurate  and  sure  as  to  be  capable  of  being  proved  to  any  average  in- 
telligence is.  science  then  according  to  Spencer  and  Huxley  ?" 

George. — "Certainly." 

Doctor. — "Why,  then,  if  I  undertake'  to  account  for  a  natural 
phenomenon  by  a  cause  which  is  outside  of  natural  causation,  and  I 
have  such  sure  and  accurate  knowledge  of  that  cause  as  to  prove  it  to 
any  average  intelligence,  why  is  it  then  that  my  explanation  is  cried 
down  as  not  being  scientific,  except  for  the  lurking,  unwarrantable 
pretension  and  gratuitous  supposition  that  beyond  nature,  its 
phenomena  and  its  laws,  there  is  nothing  to  learn  surely  and 
accurately  or  capable  of  demonstration  ?  'No  evidence  can  justify  ua 
in  asserting  that  any  phenomenon  is  out  of  the  reach  of  natural 
causation.'  In  other  words,  outside  nature,  its  phenomena  and  its 
laws,  there  is  nothing  more  to  be  learned,  or  at  least  to  be  learned  with 
such  a  sure  and  accurate  knowledge  or  evidence  as  to  be  capable  of 
being  proved  to  an  average  intelligence." 

GeorgeW'But  they  say  we  don't  object  to  your  learning  anything 
beyond  the  physical  universe,  its  phenomena  and  its  laws,  or  to 
acquire  even  a  scientific  knowledge  of  this  something,  if  you  can.  All 
we  want  is  that  physical  pheaoaaena,  facts  belonging  to  the  physical 
world,  should  not  be  accounted  for  except  by  physical  and  natural 
causes." 

Doctor. — "  I  insist  that  any  explanation  of  a  phenomenon 
found  on  a  knowledge  so  sure  and  accurate  as  to  be  capable 
of  demonstration  is  and  must  be  called  scientific,  and  that 
the  so-called  scientists  have  no  right  whatever  to  turn  up  their 
nose  with  utter  disdain  and  disgust  when  they  hear  an  explana- 
tion, derived  from  other  sources  than  what  seems  to  them  natural 
cause  and  call  it  unscientific.  If  it  comes  from  a  knowledge  sure  and 
accurate,  capable  of  proof,  it  is  scientific,  else  all  our  knowledge  and 
science  is  limited  and  narrowed  down  to  the  physical  world,  its  move- 
ment and  its  laws.  In  one  word,  is  science  limited  only  to  that  sure 
and  accurate  knowledge  capable  of  proof  of  the  visible  universe,  its 
phenomena  and  its  laws,  or  can  it  have  some  other  object?  If  it  is 
limited  to  the  first,  then  our  knowledge  is  confined  to  the  universe, 
its  movement  and  its  laws,  jind  the  whole  human  encyclopaedia  is 


Ill 

:jflrrowfii  down  to  physical  sciences  ;  or  it  can  have  some  other  object, 
And  then  we  must  admit  the  scientific  diarnrter  and  value  of  any  ex- 
planation which  is  beyond  the  sphere  of  physical  science  and  natural 
causation.  What  you  urge  about  their  saying  that  natural  phe- 
nomena or  facts  niust  only  be  accounted  for  by  natural  causes  is  a 
begging  of  the  question.  It  supposes  that  the  visible  universe,  its 
phenomena  and  its  laws,  can  and  tnust  be  accounted  by  natural  causes. 
They  take  that  for  granted.  Have  they  ever  proved  it,  or  attempted 
even  to  give  an  apology  for  a  proof  ?  It  is  as  much  as  to  say  the  world 
must  be  accounted  for  by  the  world,  nature  must  be  explained  by 
nature;  natural  causes  must  be  accounted  for  by  natural  causes. 
What  is  that  but  saying  that  the  world,  the  universe,  nature  are 
absol'itely  independent  of  any  other  cause,  and  consequently  abso- 
lute and  self-existent,  for  that  which  can  furnish  of  itself  a  reason  for 
its  existence  and  movement  is  independent  and  self  existent?  I  con- 
cede that  physical  facts  should  be  accounted  for  by  physical  and 
natural  cause,  so  far  as  possible,  and  that  it  would  be  absurd  to  call  in 
a  foreign  cause,  so  to  speak,  to  account  for  a/ physical  phenomenon, 
when  the  natural  cause  is  at  hand  to.  explain  it ;  but  to  say  it  in  a 
general  sense,  as  embracing  all  cases,  to  say  in  an  absolute  sense, 
nature  must  be  accounted  for  by  nature,  io  the  absolute  denial  of 
creation,  and  the  assertion  of  the  self-existence  of  the  universe." 

Adele. — "But,  uncle,  what  did  you  mean  when  you  said  that 
scientists  have  noxight  to  reject  as  unscientific  an  explanation  which 
is  derived  from  other  sources  than  what  seems  to  them  natural  ?" 

Doctor. — "You  bring  me  to  a  part  of  the  subject  which  we  must 
mention,  and  about  which  our  scientists  are  either  laboring  under  a 
very  gross  and  sad  mistake,  or  are  wilfully  and  maliciously  misleading 
others.  They  call  every  action  of  God,  either  in  creating  the  first 
matter  of  the  universe,  or  in  creating  the  different  species,  or  in  gov- 
erning and  ruling  the  universe,  a  miraculous  fact,  a  supernatural 
interposition  of  the  Creator,  a  supernatural  explanation,  an  inter- 
ference of  the  Creator,  and  so  forth.  Read  the  passages  marked, 
George." 

George. — " 'The  Creator  thought  fit  to  interfere  in  the  natural 
course  of  event?,'  etc.  'The  supernatural  interference  of  the  Creator 
can,  by  the  nature  of  the  case,  exemplify  no  law.'  (Huxley,  'Lay  Ser- 
mons.') 'If  we  were  childish  enough  to  rush  into  a  supernatural  ex- 
planation,'(Romanes, 'Scientific  Evidence,'  page  3).  'To  admit  crea- 
tion,' says  Buckner,  'is  always  to  substitute  the  miracle  for  the  law  of 
nature.'"  {^Loc.cit.) 

Doctor. — "You  see,  then,  that  acientists,  with  that  extreme  and 
incredible  ignorance  of  all  true  philosophy  and  religious  kn' (wledge 
so  peculiar  to  them,  call  supernatural  and  miraculous  what  np  Chris- 


112 

tian  philosopher  for  nineteen  centuries  ever  as  much  as  oreamt  of 
considering  and  calling  by  any  other  name  than  natural.  For  all 
Christian  philosophy  and  theology  has  always  understood  by  natural 
creation,  that  act  of  God  which  creates  from  nothing  all  cosmic  sub- 
stances for  a  certain  end,  and  endows  them  with  faculties  and  move- 
ment subject  to  certain  laws  ;  act  which  after  creating  them,  contin- 
ues to  keep  them  in  existence  and  to  aid  them  in  their  action  and 
movement  towards  reaching  their  end,  both  individual  and  cosmical. 
Christian  philosophy  considers  all  those  elements  comprised  in  the 
definition  as  natural.  First,  the  creative  act  producing  cosmic  sub- 
stances with  their  faculties  and  movement  subject  to  certain  general 
laws;  second,  the  continuation  of  this  act  in  maintaining  and  conserv- 
ing those  substances  in  existence ;  thirdly,  the  action  of  God,  coope- 
rating with  the  movement  of  created  substances  towards  their  devel- 
opment and  tov7ards  their  attaining  their  end,  both  individual  and 
universal.  We  Christians  call  all  these  natural  causes  first  God,  the  su- 
preme and  universal  cause  of  the  universe  in  its  existence  and  move- 
ment, created  substances,  secondary  causes  and  subordinate  agents; 
but  all  natural  and  not  supernatural,  all  according  to  the  general  laws 
established  by  the  Creator,  and  not  by  miraculous  extraordinary 
ways  outside  the  established  laws.  We  call  all  those  causes  natural 
and  we  can  prove  it,  and  have  proved  it  by  such  sublime  monuments 
of  Christian  reasoning,  as  would  stagger  the  keenest  and  boldest  intel- 
lects among  our  friends,  the  scientists.  What  do  they  mean,  then, 
when  they  so  confidently  spout  out  that  we  are  having  recourse  to  the 
supernatural,  to  an  extraordinary  interference  of  the  Creator,  to  a 
miraculous  action  when  we  explain  the  origin  of  species  by  an  act  of 
the  Creator  ?  They  evidently  do  not  know  what  they  are  talking 
about." 

Adele. — "They  are  so  childishly  afraid,  it  seems  to  me,  of  the 
supernatural  and  the  miraculous  that  they  scent  its  presence  even 
when  it  is  myriads  of  miles  away ;  a  dread,  a  tremor,  a  chilly  sensation, 
a  creeping  like  a  serpent's  invasion  comes  over  and  makes  them  shiver 
at  the  very  shadow  of  the  supernatural.  Be  calmed,  be  soothed, 
gentlemen,  be  comforted;  the  supernatural  and  the  miracle  are  far,  far 
away  ;  they  cannot  hurt  a  hair  of  your  venerable  and  hoary  heads." 

George. — "Then  you  claim  that  the  explanation  from  design  is 
within  the  reach  of  the  natural,  as  you  claim  that  the  whole  creation, 
implying  God  as  the  first  cause,  and  created  substances  as  secondary 
agents,  must  all  be  considered  as  the  natural  causes  of  the  universe 
and  of  every  phenomenon  taking  place  therein." 

Doctor.— "Certainly  ;  no  Christian  philosopher  or  theologian  ever 
considered  them  in  any  other  light." 

George. — "But  supposing  all  this  to  be  as  you  state  it,  Doctor,  and. 


118 

as  I  have  no  doubt  it  is,  evolutionieta  have  another  escape.  They  may 
say:  Well,  grained  that  it  is  not  calling  in  the  supernatural,  when 
you  admit  special  creations,  but  only  the  natural,  you  yourself  have 
admitted  that  when  a  phenomenon  can  be  explained  without  bringing 
the  interference  of  God's  action,  but  by  created  agencies,  we  must  be 
Siitistied  with  the  latter.  Here  are  the  words  of  M.  Romanes:  'Once 
admit  the  glaring,  illogical  principle  that  we  may  assume  the  opera- 
tion of  higher  causes,  when  the  operation  of  lower  ones  is  sufficient  to 
explain  the  observed  phenomena,  and  all  our  science  and  all  our 
philosophy  are  scattered  to  the  winds.  For  the  law  of  logic,  which 
Sir  William  Hamilton  called  the  law  of  parsimony,  which  forbids  us 
to  assume  the  operation  of  higher  causes,  when  the  lower  ones  are 
found  sufficient  to  explain  the  observed  effects,  this  law  constitutes  the 
only  logical  barrier  between  science  and  superstition.' " 

Doctor. — 'I  think  Sir  William  Hamilton  might  have  used  a  better 
word  than  parsimony  to  express  that  beautiful  law  of  wisdom  expressed 
by  St.  Thomas  long  before  him:  'Sapiens  operator  perficit  opus  suum 
brt'viori  via  qu-i  potest' — 'a  wise  artificer  performs  his  intended  work  by 
the  shortest  possible  way.'  And  in  one  of  our  conversations,  if  you 
remember,  we  called  it  the  law  of  the  minimum  means." 

Adele. — "I  recollect  when  we  proved  that  evolution  within  each 
species  can  and  must  be  allowed ;  because  before  God  should  inter- 
fere with  His  creative  action  in  producing  a  desired  effect.  He  must,  in 
force  of  that  law,  allow  secondary  causes  to  have  all  the  play  thev 
can." 

Doctor. — "Decidedly.  We  therefore  admit  that  law.  But  what 
good  will  that  do  to  the  evolutionists?  Before  they  can  call  it  in,  in 
aid  of  their  theory,  they  must  first  prove  that  the  existence  of  all 
natural  species,  from  the  lowest  to  the  highest,  can  be  accounted  for 
fully  and  perfectly  by  the  admission  of  a  few  primitive  living  forms, 
out  of  which  all  were  gradually,  successively  and  in  a  rising  propor- 
tion developed.  When  they  have  proved  that  they  can  call  on  the 
law  of  wisdom,  or,  if  they  like  better  of  parsimony,  to  oblige  us  to 
admit  their  explanation.  The  whole  question  then  is  here:  we  both 
admit  that  law,  the  evolutionists  and  their  opponents.  The  former 
claim  that  by  that  law  we  must  not  call  in  the  action  of  God  to  ex- 
plain the  existence  of  all  cosmical  species,  because  they  insist  that 
the  hypothesis  of  a  few  of  the  lowest  forms  out  of  which  all  have 
been  developed  and  evolved  fully  accounts  for  them.  We,  admitting 
the  same  law,  contend  that  we  are  necessitated  to  call  in  God's  action, 
because  their  hypothesis  by  no  manner  of  means  accounts  for  the  ex- 
istence of  all  cosmical  species.  But  we  insist  that  our  explanation  is 
as  natural  aa  theirs,  even  supposing  theirs  to  be  satisfactory,  that  our 
explanation  is  as  scientific  aa  theirs,  and  that  they  have  no  right  to 


114 

show  their  fastidiousness  and  repugnance  to  consider  as  unscientific 
what  does  not  square  with  their  system,  and  to  create  a  prejudice 
as;ainst  our  explanation  by  that  high  sounding  condemnation.  Adele, 
please  to  give  a  summary  of  our  whole  convereation." 

Adele. — "We  set  out  with  inquiring  what  is  a  scientific  explana- 
tion, and  we  proved  that,  according  to  the  definition  of  Spencer  and 
Huxley,  every  kind  of  knowledge  which  is  sure  and  accurate  and 
capable  of  being  proved  to  a  competent  intelligence  must  deserve  the 
name  of  scientific;  that  the  pretension  of  Huxley,  to  the  effect  that 
no  amount  of  evidence  can  justify  us  to  explain  any  fact  by  any  but 
a  natural  cause,  is  an  unwarrantable  assertion,  as  it  would  reduce  all 
human  knowledge  to  natural  sciences ;  that  they  have  either  wilfully 
or  ignorantly  called  supernatural  and  miracle  what  the  Christian 
world  has  always  looked  upon  and  vindicated  as  pertaining  to  the 
natural  order ;  and  that,  though  it  be  true,  that  we  must  not  call  in 
God's  action  when  a  fact  can  be  explained  by  created  agency,  this 
concession  will  not  help  evolutionists,  as  it  leaves  the  question  where 
it  was,  whether  their  hypothesis  accounts  for  the  facts.  As  a  conse- 
quence of  all  this  we  have  gained  the  advantage  of  removing  from 
one  explanation  from  design  the  objection  of  its  being  unscientific, 
and  of  calling  in  the  supernatural  and  the  miraculous?" 

Doctor. — "We  will  in  our  next  conversation  see  if  the  evolution- 
ists' explanation  of  the  resemblance  of  all  living  beings  in  form,  in 
structure,  and  even  in  their  physical  ills  is  satisfactory." 


NINETEENTH  ARTICLE. 

IS  THE  evolutionists'   EXPLANATION  OF  THE  FACTS  FROM  JIORPHOLOGY, 
ANATOMY  AND  PATHOLOGY  REASONABLE  AND  SATISFACTORY  ? 

Doctor. — "George,  please  to  state  the  facts  which  evolutionists 
undertake  to  explain." 

George. — "In  all  living  species,  but  especially  in  animal  species, 
we  find  the  following  general  fact;  a  common  resemblance,  and  as  it 
were,  a  family  look,  in  the  form  and  structure  of  their  organs,  even  in 
the  framework  of  the  same.  This  resemblance  begins  at  the  very 
lowest  organic  forms,  and  rises  up  constantly,  insensibly,  gradually, 
step  by  step ;  and  in  proportion  as  the  organisms  ascend  in  the  scale 
and  become  higher  and  more  complicated*  the  similarity  increases,  so 
that  you  would  say  that  they  were  all  cast  at  one  mould." 

Adele. — "Now,  give  us  the  explanation  of  evolutionists  ?" 

George — "How  can  such  a  resemblance  be  accounted  for?  Very 
simply ;  the  organic  forms  present  a  family  resemblance  because  they 


115  , 

belong,  in  reality,  to  one  family  ;  they  descend  from  one  progenitor, 
or  a  few  couples  which,  starting  from  the  lowest  steps  of  organic  life, 
are  gritdually  developed  into  a  higher,  and  then,  into  one  higher  still, 
until  they  reach  the  highest— man." 

Doctor.— "Very  easily  said.  We  must  now  examine  whether 
reason  and  common  sense  can  accept  such  an  explanation  ;  and  to  do 
it  more  orderly  and  clearly  we  will  investigate  the  following  points: 
lirst,  what  are  these  progenitors,  and  what  is  the  amount  of  capital,  so 
to  speak,  they  start  with.  Second,  by  what  means  are  they  continually 
changed  from  one  class  to  another.  When  we  have  fully  discussed 
these  two  poinis  we  shall  discover  what  is  to  be  thought  of  such  ex- 
planation." 

Adele.— "I  understand  ;  we  want  to  know  what  are  these  venerable 
and  ancient  and  primitive  progenitors  of  all  organic  life,  and  how 
they  contrive  to  change  from  one  to  another  ?" 

Doctor.— "Now,  George,  please  to  tell  us  what  these  progenitors  are 
according  to  best  and  greatest  evolutionists." 

George — "For  the  sake  of  clearness  and  simplicity  I  will  suppose 
that  such  a  progenitor  is  only  one ;  first,  because  logic  would  force  us 
into  it,  and  secondly,  because  Darwin  himself  is  not  averse  to  ad- 
mitting it  in  those  words :  'There  is  a  grandeur  in  this  view  of  life, 
with  its  several  powers  having  been  originally  breathed  by  the  Creator 
into  a  few  forms,  or  into  one'  ('Origin  of  Species,'  p.  428)." 

Adele.— "Well,  let  it  be  one,  and  tell  us  now  his  whole  history." 

George. — "I  will  not,  of  course,  mention  those  who  maintain  that 
all  life  has  sprung  up  from  dead  inert  matter.  We  disposed  of  that 
opinion  in  two  of  our  former  conversations.  I  will  give  the  opinion 
of  those  evolutionists  who,  like  Darwin,  admit  the  creation  of  the  first 
and  the  most  simple  form  of  life.  Now,  we  cannot  find  in  nature  any 
form  of  life  lower  or  more  simple  than  that  which  consists  of  one 
single  cell,  and  is,  on  that  account,  called  unicellular.  From  such  a 
thing  as  a  unicellular  living  being  must  all  the  vegetable  and  animal 
species  have  descended." 

Adele. — "It  takes  one's  breath  away  to  have  to  gulp  down  such  a 
tremendous  paradox.  Strofte,  indeed,  must  the  faith  of  scientists  be. 
The  moving  of  a  mountain,  the  old  teet  of  the  great  efficacy  of  that 
virtue  would  be  a  child's  play  alongside  of  that." 

Doctor. — "Let  us  examine  what  the  supposition  implies.  What 
power  or  force  do  evolutionists  attribute  to  this  progenitor  of  all  living 
species?" 

George. — "I  am  not  aware  that  they  attribute  to,  or  predicate  of  it, 
any  particular  force  any  more  than  what  belongs  to  the  nature  of  any 
kind  of  unicellular  beings." 

Doctor. — "What!    Do  you  mean  to  say,  that,  for  instance,  a  tiny 


,  IIG 

little  speck,  an  imperceptible  cell,  is  or  can  be  the  parent  of  the  whole 
vegetable  world,  from  the  moss  or  fern  to  the  most  gigantic  inhabi- 
tants of  the  forest!  That  from  it  also  must  spring  all  sorts  of  animal 
life!  That,  starting  from  the  minutest  and  it  finitely  small  infusoria, 
it  must  evolve  itself  into  the  radiate,  the  mollusk,  the  articulate  and 
the  vertebrate,  the  latter  embracing  the  greatest  and  the  best  in  the 
animal  world,  such  as  fishes,  reptiles,  birds,  mammals,  at  the  head  "of 
which  stands,  preeminently,  man!  Do  you  mean  to  sa^  that  this  im- 
perceptible little  speck  is  not  endowed  with  such  a  native  force  and 
energy,  such  an  exterminate  hidden  power,  such  a  boundless  activity 
as  to  be  able  to  produce  such  enormous  and  colossal  results?" 

George. — "They  certainly  do  not  claim  for  it  any  special  powers." 

Doctor. — "Well,  we  must  bid  an  eternal  farewell  to  logic  and  to 
all  principles  of  ontology.  It  is  a  principle  of  ontology  that  no  efiect 
can  be  superior  to  its  real  cause,  that  whatever  is  contained  in  the 
eflect  must  be  found  also  in  some  way  or  another  in  the  cause,  becau.^e 
effect  means  that  which  comes  from  the  cause;  and  how,  in  the  name 
of  common  sense,  could  it  come  from  it  if  it  were  not  in  some  way  or 
another  in  the  cause  ?  This  great  principle  of  ontology  can  be  illu- 
strated by  thousands  of  examples.  Heat,  for  instance,  cannot  be  more 
powerful  or  more  raging  than  the  heated  body  which  produces  it ; 
movement  must  necessarily  follow  and  be  measured  by  the  amount 
of  force  exercised  by  the  motor;  a  machine  of  a  thousand  horse- 
power could  not  produce  an  eiJect  requiring  ten  times  that  amount; 
an  ant  could  not  shake  up  Mount  Blanc  from  its  foundation,  nor  a 
satellite  in  our  solar  system,  such  as  the  moon,  attract  all  the  planets 
and  satellites  as  our  sun  does.  How,  then,  can  we  dream  for  a  single 
moment  that  a  cell  could  evolve  the  whole  vegetable  and  animal 
kingdom  out  of  its  bosom  without  endowing  it  almost  with  omnipo- 
tent power  and  energy,  without  making  it  the  condensation,  the 
abridgment,  the  veiy  quintessence  of  the  whole  vegetable  as  well  as 
animal  kingdom,  reduced  into  infinitesimal  proportions  ?" 

Adele. — "This  reveraes  the  great  saying  of  Horace :  'The  mountains 
bring  forth  ;  lo,  a  ridiculous  mouse  appears.'  We  should  say:  'The 
mouse  brings  forth  ;  there  arises  a  huge  mountain.'  " 

Doctor. — "Then  again  this  primitive  form  or  type  out  of  which  all 
organic  species  must  spring  forth  must  be  supposed  to  be  always  in  a 
state  of  t  rausition,  in  a  continual  metamorphosis,  in  an  ever-varyii)g 
change;  at  one  period  it  is  a  living  vegetable  tell;  then  it  is  thf 
greatest  tree  ;  now  it  is  infusoria,  and,  after  long  successive  centuriet^, 
it  begins  to  put  on  the  appearance  of  more  developed  mollusks,  from 
the  pecten  or  marine  bivalve  to  the  ascidian  or  acephalous  mollusk ; 
thence  to  higher  forms  of  structure;  first  the  low  articulata,  as  the 
astacus  or  crab  and  worms,  to  the  strange  pagurian  hermit  who  takes 


117 

refuge  in  deserted  shells  of  univalves  ;  thence  to  the  primitive  forms 
of  lishes,  such  as  the  ganoid  or  star-lish  of  the  paleozoic  period ; 
then  to  the  higher  forms  of  lizards,  to  the  amphibia  and  reptiles  and 
batrachia  or  toad?,  frogs,  and  salamanders ;  thence  to  birds  of  count- 
less patterns,  till  it  reaches  the  lowest  mammals;  and  thence  to  a 
grade  next  in  order,  as  classified  marsupalia,  that  is,  mammals  hav- 
ing a  pouch  for  carrying  their  young  ones;  and,  the  development 
continuing,  it  comes  to  more  perfect  mammals,  as  rabbits,  fuxes, 
wolves,  jackals,  lions,  till  it  strikes  at  the  lower  monkeys,  as  the  lemur, 
and  through  them  to  the  quadrumaua  of  the  highest  type  of  struc- 
ture, such  as  the  ourangoutang  and  g(  rilla,  from  which  man  was  de- 
veloped. Here  we  have  an  infinitesimal  form  of  life  ahvays  on  the 
way,  never  resting,  but  moving,  passing  from  one  state  to  another,  no 
sooner  has  it  rcHched  one  state  than  it  craves  and  begins  new  eflorts 
for  another.  It  is  essentially  transitory  and  a  bird  of  p.is's.jge  so  to  speak. 
Now  such  a  being  may  have  an  existence  in  the  fertile  brain  of  Dar- 
win and  his  supporters,  but  never  existed  in  nature,  as  we  have  proved 
from  historical  and  paleontological  records,  and,  aa  Huxley  himself, 
after  stating  the  documents  from  the  two  mentioned  sources  proving 
the  fixity  of  species,  freely  acknowledges.  Read  the  words,  George, 
from  his  second  'Lecture  on  Evolution.'" 

George. — "  'Facts  of  this  kind  ar^  undoubtedly  fatal  to  any  form 
of  the  doctrine  of  evolution  which  pos'ulaus  the  supposition  that 
there  is  an  intrinsic  necessity  on  the  part  of  animal  forms  which  have 
come  into  existence  to  undergo  [continual  modifications.'  ('Humboldt 
Ed.,'  p.  14.)" 

Adele. — "I  would  like  to  inquire  of  evolutionists  why  should 
living  form  or  any  animal  strive  to  ^e  transformed  into  another?" 

George. — "In  order  to  become  more  evolved  and  perfect."  * 

Doctor. — "Evolutionists  labor  under  a  very  great  mistake  as  to 
what  is,  or  is  not  perVction  for  a  plsnt  or  animal.  I  have  marked  a 
very  remarkable  passage  from  F.  Secchi,  which  I  want  you  to  read 
upon  the  point." 

George. — " 'A  grave  defect  is  found  in  the  reason  of  these  persons; 
they  are  continually  talking  of  imperfect  animals  becoming  perfect. 
Put  what  is  the  idea  of  perfection  in  such  matter?  According  to 
right  thinkers,  that  animal  is  perfect  which  has  all  the  means  neces- 
sary to  its  support  and  reproduction.  Now  the  monera  as  well  as  the 
battrybius,  the  mollu.'k-  p.'^  well  as  worm?,  and  the  radiate  as  well  as  the 
vertebrafe,  are  in  this  rcs^pect  completely  p(  rfcct.  Why  should  they 
seek  for  more?  It  is  true  that  it  is  said  that  in  the  development  of 
the  difierent  families  of  being  a  progrees  is  remarked,  which  bears  a 
great  similarity  to  the  stages  travelled  by  the  fcetus  of  the 
more    perfect    animals ;    from    which   one  could   infer    that    those 


118 

less  perfect  are  so  many  incomplete  foetus  arrested  in  their 
course.  Error  and  absurdity!  because  even  conceding  that  similarity, 
a  thing  which  not  so  well  proven  as  it  is  pretended,  between  the  peri- 
ods of  the  foetus  not  developed  and  those  @f  the  more  perfect  there  is 
the  immense  difference  that  the  inchoate  fce;us  can  neither  live  nor 
be  reproduced  except  it  arrives  at  completion  ;  and  the  daily  experi- 
ence denies  that  an  incomplete  'ceus  can  give  life  to  any  living  crea- 
ture, wheres.3  these  are  propagated  and  multiplied,  and  nothing  is 
wanting  to  their  own  absolute  perfection.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  we 
speak  of  relative  perfection — that  is,  inasmuch  as  we  call  more  perfect 
that  being  which  can  be  put  in  contact  with  greater  number  of  ex- 
terior agents  and  enjoy  greater  communications  with  external  nature, 
it  is  true  that  there  are  a  great  many  degrees  of  perfection,  because, 
of  course,  the  mammal  has  more  extended  relations  with  the  exterior 
world  than  the  polyp,  but  it  is  not  in  the  power  of  the  animal  to  fix 
or  to  determine  the  grades  of  relation,  nor  can  it  arrest  its  develop- 
ment in  any  way.'  (First  Discourse  on  the  Grandeur  of  the  Uni- 
verse)" 

Adele. — "But  let  us  come  to  the  other  more  important  point :  By 
what  means  is  this  primitive  type  evolved  into  the  whole  vegetable  and 
animal  kingdom?" 

Doctor. — 'Understand  the  cjuestion  well,  Adele.  Here  we  have 
by  the  supposition  one  single  cell,  from  which  all  vegetable  and  ani- 
mal life  has  to  be  evolved  and  unfolded.  The  question  is  :  How  can 
this  tiny  living'form  from  being  unicellular  become  multicellular,  from 
having  such  parts  assume  different  ones,  from  being  what  it  is  become 
another?" 

Adele. — "I  perceive  perfectly;  the  very  stating  of  the  ques'ion 
•seems  to  be  absurd  and  ludicrous." 

George. — "Darwin  puts  himself  that  question  :  'Looking  at  the 
first  dawn  of  life,  when  all  organic  beings  presented  the  simplest 
structure,  how,  it  has  been  asked,  could  the  first  steps  in  the  advance- 
ment or  differentiation  of  parts  have  arisen  ?'  After  having  said  how 
Spencer  would  get  out  of  difficulty,  he  continues :  'But  as  we  have  no 
facts  to  guide  us,  speculation  OH  the  subject  is  almost  useless.  It  is, 
however,  an  error  to  suppose  that  there  would  be  no  struggle  for  ex- 
istence, and  consequently  no  natural  selection,  until  many  forms  would 
have  been  produced ;  variations  in  a  single  species  inhabiting  an  iso- 
lated station  might  be  beneficial,  and  thus  the  whole  mass  of  indi- 
viduals, or  two  distinct  forms,  might  arise.'    ('Origin  of  Species,'  p. 56.)" 

Doctor. — "It  is  the  very  climax  of  absurdity,  George.  These  gen- 
tlemen have  rejected  the  doctrine  of  special  creation,  which  accounts 
for  the  existence  of  different  species,  in  order  to  set  up  their  theory  of 
every  species  of  the  organic  and  animal  world  having  been  evolved  or 


119 

drawn  out  of  a  single  living  cell.  When  we  ask,  as  we  have  an  un- 
doubted right  to  demaLHl,  how  that  cell  from  being  one  thing  becomes 
another,  what  are  the  tirat  steps  to  perform  such  wonder,  we  are  told 
that  'speculation  on  the  subject  is  almost  useless.'  He  should  have 
acknowledged  that  an  answer  to  such  a  question  is  absolutely  impos- 
sible, because  the  thing  itself  is  utterly  and  absolutely  impossible. 
Mark  it  well.  Here  is  a  substance  of  a  certain  nature  represented  by 
a  single  cell.  We  will  suppose  that  it  naturally  seeks  to  grow,  follow- 
ing the  impulse  imparted  by  the  Creator  into  all  living  beings.  Very 
good ;  in  what  direction  is  it  to  gro??  ?  In  the  direction  and  accord- 
ing to  the  laws  of  its  nature.  By  what  means  is  it  to  grow?  By  ap- 
propriating from  external  objects  what  is  necessary  and  befitting  to  its 
nature;  for  such  is  the  law  of  life  of  created  substances.  What  does 
not  suit  its  nature  it  rejects  and  eliminates;  what  serves  its  nature  it 
appropriates  and  makes  its  own.  What  is  the  result  ?  Growth  of  that 
single  tiny  cell  into  a  large  cell,  if  its  nature  is  to  have  one  single  cell, 
or  into  several  cells,  if  its  nature  admits  of  them,  but  the  growth  will 
always  and  forever  be  of  the  same  nature  and  never  of  a  difierent  one  ; 
if  the  primitive  cell  belongs  to  the  vegetable  kingdom,  it  will  never 
overstep  the  boundary  of  that  kingdom,  because  it  is  a  contradiction 
that  any  being  should  have  a  tendency  to  lose  its  own  identity  to  be 
come  another.  But  to  go  on,  you  had  better  explain  to  Adele,  George, 
by  what  means  Darwin  endeavors  to  explain  how  the  first  cell  tries  and 
succeeds  to  throw  ofi  its  own  identity." 

George. — "He  does  so  by  means  of  natural  selection.  Let  us  sup- 
pose a  number  of  beings  representing  the  lowest  f  )rm  of  type  and 
composed  of  a  single  cell.  There  will  be  among  them  a  struggle  to 
dispute  the  sources  of  life.  When  some  of  them  during  this  struggle 
happened  to  strike  some  accidental  modification  which  could  be 
turned  to  advantage  they  caught  hold  of  it  and  transmitted  it  to  their 
descendants,  who  in  consequence  of  that  advaniug^ous  modincaUon, 
which  was  accentuated  more  and  more,  became  better  favored  and 
succeeded  in  overcoming  in  the  struggle  for  life  lees  gifted  opponents. 
Hence  these  may  be  called  the  chosen  and  selected  of  nature,  ar.d  the 
sum  of  all  thi  se  useful  variations  possessed  by  a  living  being  tending 
to  secure  f..r  it,  and  its  descendants  who  inherit  it,  the  greatest 
chance  of  t  lulurance  and  propagation  is  called  natural  selection." 

A.f\elj  — '  Well,  I  easily  perceive  how  Darwin  endeavors  to  explain 
how  in  the  struggle  for  life  the  tiny  little  creatures  of  the  lowest  forms 
acquire  ct  rtain  modifications  which  may  make  them  hardier  and 
stronger,  and  .aable  them  to  come  off  victorious  in  the  fight,  and  how 
the  sum  of  all  these  advantages  may  be  styled  natural  selection,  but  I 
cannot  for  the  life  of  me  understand  how  the  sum  of  all  those  advan- 
tageous little  modifications  can  change  those  primitive  things  into 


120 

higher  species  and  much  more  elaborate  and  complicated  structures 
and  organisms." 

George. — "I  will  answer  in  the  words  of  Darwin  himself:  'We 
must  suppose  that  there  is  a  power  represented  by  natural  selection 
or  the  survival  of  the  fittest  always  intently  watchii  g  each  slight 
alteration  in  the  transparent  layers,  and  carefully  preseiving  each, 
which,  under  varied  circumstances,  in  any  way  or  iu  any  degree, 
tends  to  produce  a  distincter  image.' " 

Doctor. — "He  is  applying  the  theory  to  the  organism  of  the  eye, 
but,  of  course,  it  must  be  understood  also  in  a  general  sense." 

George. — "Natural  selection  will  pick  out  with  unerring  skill  each 
improvement.  Let  this  process  go  on  for  millions  of  years,  that  a 
living  instrument  might  thus  be  formed  (page  82.)" 

Adele. — "Then  such  powers  must  be  gifted  with  the  highest  intel- 
ligence to  be  able  to  spy  every  opportunity  and  to  hoard  up  every 
possible  alteration  and  change  to  turn  them  to  the  best  possible 
account,  being  perfectly  aware,  of  course,  of  the  end  at  which  it  in- 
tends to  arrive." 

Doctor. — "Fiddlestick,  Adele.  This  power  or  natural  selection  is 
stone  blind,  perfectly  unintelligent  and  brutish  ;  it  perceives  no  end, 
nor  how  to  adapt  means  to  the  end.  It  has  no  design  whatever,  no 
aim  that  it  is  acquainted  with,  and  only  goes  on  blindly  and 
accidentally  without  either  knowing  whence  it  started  nor  to  where 
it  may  possibly  be  going.     George,  am  I  describing  it  correctly  ?" 

George. — "Certainly.  Darwin  does  not  endow  this  natural  selec- 
tion with  any  intelligence  which  may  have  formed  a  design,  and 
which  it  endeavors  to  realize  by  adapting  means  to  an  end." 

Adele. — "Well,  then,  how  does  it  produce  those  changes  which 
causes  new  species  ?" 

George. — "By  adapting  the  various  forms  of  life  to  their  environ- 
ments, or  to  the  several  exterior  conditions  and  stations,  of  climate,  of 
food,  of  association  with  other  species,  etc." 

Doctor. — "Yes,  sir ;  natural  selection  or  the  survival  of  the  fittest, 
accidentally,  blindly  without  design,  without  an  end  iu  view,  without 
being  able  to  discern  how  this  stands  to  that,  must  explain  the  ex- 
istence not  only  of  the  smallest  and  simplest,  but  of  the  most  compli- 
cated organs,  such  as  the  ear,  the  eye,  the  brain,  the  heart,  the  circula- 
tion of  the  blood,  the  hand,  the  foot.  This  implies  such  monstrous 
assumptions  that  even  Darwin  has  been  staggered.  'To  suppose,'  he 
says,  'that  the  eye,  with  all  its  inimitable  contrivances  for  adjusting 
the  focus  to  difterent  distances,  for  admitting  different  amounts  of  light, 
and  for  the  correction  uf  spherical  and  chromatic  abcrrai  ions,  could 
have  been  formed  by  natural  selection  seems,  I  freely  confess,  absurd 
in  the  highest  degree.' " 


121 

Adelo. — "Ho  has  a  glimmering  of  common  sense  'eft/' 
George. — "Haeckel,  hie  great  admirer,  sees  the  same  diflBculty.  A 
diflBculty  of  the  greatest  importance  against  the  theory  of  descent,  in 
the  eyes  of  many  naturalists  and  philosophers,  lies  in  the  fact  that  the 
theory  explains  the  formation  of  organs  appropriated  to  a  certain  end 
by  means  of  blind  and  purely  mechanical  causes.  Such  objection 
assumes  particular  importance  from  the  consideration  of  those  organs 
appearing  to  be  so  wonderfully  adapted  to  an  object  altoo-ctlicr 
special.  In  the  lirst  rank  are  to  be  placed  the  superior  organs  of  the 
senses  of  animals,  the  eye  and  the  ear.  If  we  were  acquainted  with 
nothing  else  than  the  eyes  and  the  organs  of  hearing  in  the  forms  of 
superior  animals,  this  alone  would  raise  great  and  insurmountable 
difficulties.  How,  in  fact,  to  explain  that,  by  the  sole  influence  of 
natural  selection,  it  has  been  possible  to  reach,  in  every  respect,  that  ex- 
traordinary and  most  admirable  high  degree  of  perfection  and  special 
adaptation  which  we  observe  in  the  eyes  and  ears  of  superior  anirrials." 
Doctor. — "Yes,  and  in  spite  of  Darwin's  and  Haeckel's  silly  answer 
the  objection  stands  absolutely  unanswerable.  What  is  the  difficulty, 
Adele  ?' 

Adele. — "How  an  organ  which  is  a  marvel  of  adaptation  of  the  parts 
to  a  definite  object  can  have  been  produced  without  a  previous 
arrangement  of  a  creative  intelligence,  but  by  certain  fatal  and  abso- 
lutely blind  forces.' 

Doctor. — "Correct ;  and  what  is  the  answer,  George  ?" 
George. — "It  amounts  to  ihis ;  that,  for  instance,  below   the  most 
perfect  we  find  a  long  series  of  visual  organs  much  more  simple." 
Adele. — "iVnd  what  do  you  conclude  from  that  ?" 
Doctor. — "It  follows  that,  besides  the  most  perfect  eye,  which  is'a 
prodigy  of  mechanical  arrangement,  there  is  a  number  more  or  less 
complicated  and  requiring  less  calculation.    But  it  does  not  exolain  • 
how  all  these  arrangements  and  combinations  were  made  by  fatal  and 
blind  forces  ;  in  other  words,  it  does  not  explain  how  a  system  of  the 
most  finished  arraijgement  was  not  arranged  at  all." 

Adele. — "What  sublime  geniuses  are  these  evolutionists!  Their 
powers  of  reasoning  must  be  colossal.  Their  answer  is  very  much 
like  that  of  one  who  should  account  for  his  assertion  that  St.  Peter's  in 
Rome  is  not  the  work  a  of  great  intelligence,  by  alleging  that  there  area 
number  of  churches  in  the  world  that  required  much  less  calculation, 
or  that  the  Strasburg  clock  was  not  made  by  the  wonderful  skill  of  a 
great  mechanic,  by  alleging  that  there  are  myriads  of  clocks  in  the 
world  which  present  a  much  more  simple  structure.  Why  don't  they 
send  the^e  great  lights  to  study  the  A,  B,  C  of  logic,  and,  if  they  are  too 
old  for  that,  why  don't  they  shut  them  up  in  an  asylum  for  the  aged 
and  the  infirm  ?' 


Doctor. — "Let  us  conclude  this  part  of  the  subject.  We  have 
seen  that  the  great  similarity  of  form  and  structure  of  the  organ, 
even  as  far  as  the  framework,  the  bones,  which  is  apparent  in  the 
organic  and  animal  kingdoms,  is  fully  and  perfectly  accounted  for  by 
the  explanation  from  design ;  that  the  evolutionists'  sneer  that  such 
an  explanation  is  not  scientific  simply,  sets  in  the  best  and  boldest 
light  the  incredible  ignorance  of  the  same  gentlemen  as  to  real  Chris- 
tian philosophy ;  that  their  explanation  by  an  intrinsic  inherent  in- 
stinct in  the  primitive  forms  to  move  forward  and  to  progress,  or  by 
the  natural  selection  is  the  height  and  climax  of  absurdity  and  ex- 
plains nothing  whatever.  We  stand,  then,  by  the  doctrine  of  special 
creations — all  made  after  the  general  plan  of  the  Creator." 

Adele. — "And  we  repeat  with  the  pride  of  a  Christian  grounded 
on  the  highest  reason  and  true  science :  'And  God  said  let  the  earth 
bring  forth  the  green  herb  such  as  may  seed,  and  the  fruit  tree  yielding 
fruit  after  its  kind.  And  God  made  the  beasts  of  the  earth  according 
to  their  kinds,  and  cattle,  and  everything  that  creepeth  upon  the 
earth  after  its  kind.'    (Genesis,  chap.  1.) " 


TWENTIETH  ARTICLE. 


ORIGIN   OF   MAN. 


Doctor. — "As  we  have  demonstrated  in  several  of  our  conversa- 
tions that  the  hypothesis  of  evolution  has  no  foundation  in  real  science, 
and  that  the  doctrine  of  special  creations  is  the  only  one  which  can 
explain  the  existence  and  origin  ©f  the  different  kingdoms  of  nature, 
the  mineral,  the  vegetable,  and  the  animal,  it  follows  as  a  necessary 
consequence  that  man's  origin  also  must  be  accounted  for  by  a  pj>aciai 
creation.  But  to  confirm  more  and  more  our  argument,  and  to  show 
how  far  from  the  truth  are  those  who  maintain  that  man  is  the  lineal 
descendant  of  the  ape,  I  want  to  devote  a  few  more  of  our  convers.^- 
tions  to  the  object  of  pointing  out  all  the  reasons  whicti  show  the 
immense  impassable  difference  which  exists  between  man  aad  the 
highest  types  of  apes.  In  this  conversation  we  will  point  out  the 
physical  differences  which  exist  between  them,  and  which  show  that 
man  cannot  by  any  manner  of  means  have  developed  from  the  ape.'' 

George. — "In  the  first  place,  they  are  not  agreed  from  what  kind 
of  ajjes  man  descends.  Darwin  refers  the  reader,  who  is  curious  to 
know  the  human  genealogy  in  detail,  to  his  disciple  Haeckcl.  Now, 
the  latter  considers  as  the  first  ancestor  of  all  living  beings,  the  monera. 
From  this  initial  form  man  has  reached  the  state  in  which  we  find 


123 

him,  by  passing  through  twenty  one  typical  transitory  forrnn.  In  the 
present  state  of  things  our  nearest  neigh  bors  are  the  anthropomorphous 
or  tailless  apes,  such  as  the  orang,  the  gorilla,  and  the  chimpanzee.  All 
sprung  from  the  same  stock,  from  the  type  of  the  tailed  catarrhine 
apes,  and  these  from  the  prosimise,  a  type  which  is  now  represented 
by  the  macaucos,  the  loriL,  etc.  Now,  although  the  distance  between 
the  anthropomorphous  apes  and  man  appears  to  be  but  small  u> 
Haeckel,  he  has,  neverthele-s,  thought  it  necessary  to  admit  nn 
intermediate  stage  between  ourselves  and  the  most  highly  developed 
ape." 

Adele. — "I  am  glad  of  that ;  and  who  or  what  is  he  ?" 

George. — "A  pure  hypothetical  being,  a  fancy  sketch  of  Professor 
Haeckel,  of  which  not  the  slightest  vestige  has  been  found.  Ke  is 
supposed  to  be  detached  from  the  tailless  apes,  and  to  constitute  the 
twenty-first  stage  of  the  moditicution  which  has  led  to  the  human 
form.  Haeckel  calls  it  the  ape-man  or  the  pithecoid  Tn.ui,  deprives 
him  of  speech  as  well  as  of  any  development  of  intelligence  and  self- 
consciousness." 

Adele. — "If  such  an  ancestor  is  a  fancy  sketch  of  the  j  rofessor,  the 
whole  thing  is  a  romance  then  ?" 

Doctor. — "Something  very  like  it." 

George. — "Darwin  makes  man  descend  from  a  tailed  ape.  'The 
earliest  ancestors  of  man  were,  without  doubt,  once  covered  with  hair, 
both  sexes  having  beards ;  their  ears  were  pointed  and  capable  of  move- 
ment, and  their  bodies  were  provided  with  a  tail  having  pioper  muscles' 
('Descent  of  Man')," 

Doctor. — "Well,  without  entering  too  deep  into  the  subject,  we 
will  assume  for  a  moment  that  man  has  descended  from  the  kind  of 
apes  which  are  nearest  to  us,  such  as  the  tailless  ape,  the  gorilla  and  the 
chimpanzee  of  Africa,  or  the  orang  and  the  gibbon  of  Sumatra  and 
Borneo,  and  we  limit  our  discussions  to  these.  Of  course,  if  we  com- 
pare the  general  structure  of  the  body  of  man  and  that  of  the  taillo^s 
apes  we  must  own  that  there  is  an  indisputable  afi&nity  between  them; 
they  are  provided  with  the  same  organs,  having  the  eame  relations 
with  each  other;  they  have  a  digestive  apparatus  const:  ucted  on  the 
game  plan,  accompanied  by  the  same  annexes.  We  may  say  the  same 
of  the  respiratory  and  circulary  organs  and  of  the  nervous  system. 
We  find  the  same  muscles,  the  same  bones  connected  with  each  by  the, 
same  relations." 

Adele. — "Then  where  is  that  impassable  difference  which  renders 
impossible  the  descendance  of  one  from  the  other  ?" 

Doctor. — "That  impassable  difference  is  found  in  the  details,  in 
the  special  structure  of  the  organs,  and  in  the  relative  development  of 
the  parts.    George,  tell  us  some  of  these  difierenc€s." 


124 

George.— ''In  the  first  place,  an  immense  difference  exists  in  the 
posture  and  carriage  of  the  body  of  man.  He  alone,  of  all  animals,  is 
made  to  stand  erect.  His  whole  organization  is  admirably  con- 
structed in  view  of  that ;  and  that  position  is  the  result  of  the  whole 
skeleton  and  of  the  form,  location  and  arrangement  of  the  muscles,  of 
the  point  of  insertion  of  the  movable  organs,  which  permit  the  body 
to  preserve,  without  labor,  the  equilibrium  in  the  erect  attitude." 

Adele.— "It  begins  to  get  interesting." 

George.— "Thus  in  man  the  head  rests  pretty  much  by  the  middle 
of  the  inferior  face,  on  the  summit  of  the  vertebral  column ;  it  is  thus 
balanced  in  its  natural  position,  and  to  maintain  such  position  has  no 
need  either  of  powerful  muscles  or  of  cervical  ligaments.  The 
vertebral  column  instead  of  being  straight  exhibits  flexures  or  bend 
of  the  joints,  alternately,  in  a  contrary  sense,  which,  by  increasing  the 
power  of  the  central  part  of  the  osseous  frame  diminishes  equally  the 
muscular  mass  employed  to  maintain  the  erect  posi  ion  of  the  body. 
The  manner  of  inserting  the  thigh-bone  in  the  bone  of  the  basin  or 
bony  cavity,  which  terminates  man's  trunk,  the  shape  and  solidity  of 
this  part  of  the  frame,  the  considerable  muscular  masses  placed  be- 
hind this  articulation,  are  evidently  intended  to  maintain  in  equili- 
brium, in  the  vertical  posture,  the  superior  parts  of  the  body,  and  to 
prevent  them  from  bending  foiward.  We  may  say  the  same  of  the 
muscles  of  the  thigh  and  the  leg,  and  especially  of  the  muscular  mass 
which  forms  the  projections  in  the  calf,  and  which  constitutes  a 
character  special  to  man.  All  these  muscles  are  intended  to  prevent 
the  articulations  of  the  leg  and  of  the  foot  from  bending  under  the 
weight  of  the  body." 

Adele.— "I  see  you  are  at  home,  here,  Mr.  George." 

George.— "Man's  foot  is  large ;  the  leg  is  perpendicularly  attached 
to  it;  the  heel  is  swollen  in  the  ander  part,  the  bones  of  the  tarsus 
and  metatarsus,  that  is,  the  bones  of  the  heel  and  of  the  instep  form  a 
kind  of  an  arch  which  protects  against  too  much  pressure  the  sole  of 
the  foot;  the  toes  are  short  and  very  limited  in  movement,  the  largest 
of  them,  the  big  toe,  is  placed  on  the  same  plane  and  not  against  the 
others.  All  these  arrangements  show  evidently  that  the  foot  has  been 
constructed  to  carry  the  weight  of  the  body  and  to  maintain  an  erect 
and  vertical  position." 

Adele.— "And  do  we  find  the  same  in  the  apes  most  like  to  man  ?" 

George —"In  apes,  on  the  contrary,  we  find  the  same  organs, 
to  be  sure,  but  most  singularly  modified.  The  head  is  inserted  upon 
the  vertebral  column,  but  not  in  the  middle  but  behind,  and  as,  on 
the  other  hand,  the  bones  of  the  lower  part  of  the  face  are  very  much 
developed,  and  the  brain  on  the  contrary  very  small,  it  follows  that 
the  whole  mass  projects  forward,  and  no  equilibrium  can  be  had  for 


ft  verticnl  posture ;  hence  these  auinaals  are  provided  with  a  Bolid 
cervicsU  ligament,  or  fastening,  and  some  powerful  muscles  to  support 
the  head  in  an  oblique  posture.  The  musculai  masses  of  the  poste- 
rior regions  of  the  basin,  and  above  all  the  muscles  of  the  thigh,  vvbich 
in  man  keeps  the  erect  position  of  the  body,  are  much  less  developed 
in  the  quadrumana.  The  basin  being  very  narrow  and  oblique  does 
not  help  the  equilibrium,  and  the  posterior  organs  are  very  little 
adapted  f  i  )r  a  vertical  posture." 

Adele. — "But  do  not  the  orangs,  and  the  chimpanzees  walk  erect 
sometimes?" 

Doctor  — "They  do ;  but  it  is  evident  that  such  mode  of  locomo- 
tion is  not  natural  to  the  poor  beasts.  For  their  walking  is  very  un- 
steady ;  they  totter  and  balance  their  arms  so  as  not  to  lose  the  equi- 
librium, and  from  time  to  time  are  obliged  to  touch  the  ground  with 
their  hands  to  reestablish  it.  Besides,  their  manner  of  walking  erect 
is  not  the  same  as  in  man,  and  if  they  straightened  themselves  up  as 
man  does,  they  would  very  soon  fall  backward.  The  vertical  posture 
fatigufs  them  and  cannot  be  maintained  long.  They  need  the  help 
of  a  third  support,  and  willingly  accept  the  aid  of  a  stafif,  which  en- 
ables them  to  assume  a  bending  posture  so  natural  to  them." 

George. — "Then  we  may  conclude  with  the  words  of  Quatrefages, 
that  'man  is  essentially  an  animal  who  walks  ;  all  apes  on  the  con- 
trary are  climbing  animals.  In  the  two  groups  the  whole  apparatus 
for  locomotion  bears  the  impress  of  the  two  different  destinations.' 
(The  Human  Species.')'' 

Doctor. — "Or  with  Goaroi,  in  whose  book  on  the  'Species'  are  to  be 
found  all  me  above  particulars — 'of  all  the  beings  of  creation  man 
alone  is  or  anized  for  a  vertical  posture,  he  alone  walks  erect.  It  is 
an  essential  character  which  decidedly  separates  him  from  all  ani- 
mals. In  Mian  the  vertical  posture  results  from  the  special  conforma- 
tion of  til'  frame  and  of  the  equilibrium  established  and  maintained, 
not  only  i  y  the  action  of  the  muscles,  but  also  by  the  weight  of  the 
different  Fplanchnological  organs.'    {'De  I'Espece,'  vol.  2,  p.  119,  Paris.)" 

Adele  — "Is  it  not  rather  a  long  word  you  attached  to  organs,  and 
for  the  explanation  of  which  I  should  be  obliged  to  you  ?" 

Georgp. — "It  comes  from  the  Greek,  and  means  organs  relating  to 
bowels." 

Doctor. — "Now  let  us  pass  to  another  organ,  one  of  the  most 
principal,  and  which  sets  in  bold  relief  the  impassable  barrier  which 
exists  between  man  and  apes." 

George. — "1  suppose  you  mean  the  brain.  Doctor?" 

Doctor. — "No,  I  mean  the  cranium,  or  the  bony  case  which  con- 
the  brain."  • 

George. — "Well,  I  know  the  labors  of  Bischoff  and  Aeby  upon 


126 

the  cranium.  I  have  read  the  latter's  work  'On  the  Forms  of  the 
Cranium  of  Man  aij '.  Apes,' wherein  the  Professor  of  Berne  has  put 
the  assertions  of  Huxley,  on  the  great  approach  and  similarity  of  man 
and  apes,  under  the  most  profound  and  severe  examination." 

Adele. — "Well  and  what  is  the  result  ?" 

George. — "He  has  accumulated,  in  view  of  this,  measurements 
and  comparisons,  under  every  possible  aspect,  of  craniums  of  all  the 
dififerent  races  of  men,  and  I  could  say  of  all  peoples,  and  at  the  same 
time  of  craniums  not  only  of  all  kinds  of  apes,  but  even  of  mammals 
inferior  to  the  latter.  That  work  contains  hundreds  and  thousands 
of  measurements,  and  is,  for  the  extent  and  variety  of  researches,  in- 
finitely superior  to  anything  which  Huxley  may  have  ever  written 
upon  the  subject." 

Adele. — "But  what  conclusion  does  it  come  to  ?" 

George. — "I  will  give  it  in  his  own  words :  '  From  the  summary 
of  all  comparisons  the  result  is  that  the  total  difference  of  man  from 
the  ape  nearest  to  him  is  greater  than  that  which  distinguishes  one 
kind  of  apes  from  another,  and  consequently  we  do  not  hesitate  for  a 
moment  to  hold  that  the  human  type  of  the  cranium  is  distinct  in 
the  nicest  possible  manner  from  the  simian  type ;'  and,  later  on :  *  In 
the  whole  series  of  mammals  it  is  impogsible  to  ficd  a  chasm  which 
could  bear  even  the  most  distant  comparison  to  that  which  separates 
the  ape  from  man.  The  human  craniums,  even  the  most  degraded, 
are  so  different  in  every  respect  from  the  simian  craniums,  the  mosL 
elevated  and  are  so  strictly  related  to  their  congenial  superiors  that 
even  the  word  simian  resemblance  should  be  abandoned.'  (Aeby, 
'Die  Schadel  Formen.')" 

Doctor. — "Now,  Adele,  if  you  want  to  laugh,  you  may  read  the 
words  of  Darwin  upon  this  very  point.    I  have  marked  the  page." 

Adele. — '"The  strongly- marked  differences  between  the  ekulls  of 
man  and  the  quadrumana  (lately  insisted  upon  by  Bischoff,  Aeby  and 
others)  apparently  follow  from  their  differently  developed  brains.' 
('Descent  of  Man.')  I  see  Mr.  Darwin  does  not  dare  to  pass  any  con- 
demnation or  criticism  on  the  exactness  of  the  results  of  Aeby,  but  to 
such  numerous  and  conclusive  facts,  he  opposes  simply  a  supposition 
of  his  own.    One  certainly  feels  inclined  to  laugh  at  such  science." 

Doctor. — "But,  by  and- by,  with  a  faculty  of  contradiction  peculiar 
to  such  scientists,  Darwin  forgets  that  he  had  admitted  the  strongly- 
marked  differences  between  the  skulls  of  man  and  the  quadrumana, 
and  has  the  courage  to  say :  'Man,  in  all  parts  of  his  organization 
differs  less  from  the  higher  apes  than  these  do  from  the  lower  mem- 
bers of  the  same  group  '  ('Descent.')  But,  George,  give  us  some  par- 
ticulars abofit  these  marked  differences,  especially  as  to  the  contents 
of  the  craniums — the  brain.'' 


1!27 

George. — "The  celebrated  German  evolutionipt,  Schaafhau?en, 
a  1V8  with  regard  to  the  brain:  'The  assertion  of  Huxley  that  men 
diifler  from  each  other  as  regards  the  volume  of  the  brain  more  than 
do  apes,  one  from  another,  is  erroneous.  It  rests  on  some  arbitr^ry 
measure  of  certain*  very  rare  and  very  doubtful  craniums  ;  whereas 
the  decision  should  depend  on  ordinary  and  medium  values.  The 
brain  of.  the  Australian  surpasses  in  volume  two  or  th«-ee  times  that 
of  the  gorilla,  and  the  brain  of  an  European  surpasses  five  times 
that  of  the  first.'  ('Question  Scientifique  de  Brussels,  July,  78  p.  179). 
Again,  •  the  human  brain  not  only  difiers  in  volume  from  that  of  the 
nearest  apes,  but  it  differs  also  in  the  revolutions  or  turninge,  which  are 
much  more  numerous  and  deeper  than  those  of  the  brain  of  animals; 
and  what  is  more  remarkable  still,  those  revolutions  in  man  are  devel- 
oped^n  a  contrary  sense  from  those  of  apes.  Those  which  in  man  appear 
first  are  the  last  to  appear  in  the  ape.  It  was  Gratiolet  who  first  observed 
this  peculiarity.  '  The  turnings,'  he  says, '  of  the  brain  of  the  ape 
appear  first  in  the  inferior  lobes,  and  last  in  the  frontal  lobes.  In 
man  the  very  reverse  occurs ;  the  frontal  turnings  appear  first,  and 
the  inferior  ones  last.  Continual  differences  result  from  this  fact  during 
the  foetal  life,  and  man  in  this  respect  appears  as  an  insoluble  excep- 
tion.' (Gratiolet,  'Revues  des  Oeuvres  Scientifique,'  vol.  1,  p.  191.)" 

Doctor. — "Well,  we  may  conclude  this  part  of  the  subject  with  the 
words  of  Professor  Burmeister,  which  recapitulate  all  we  have  f-aid 
upon  the  immense  physical  differences  between  man  and  the  apes, 
even  the  best  developed  and  nearest  to  him  :  'Man,'  says  the  professor, 
'is  distinguished  from  the  ape  in  the  construction  of  the  body  by  a 
greater  development  of  the  brain,  by  the  structure  of  the  skeleton 
destined  to  walk  erect,  by  a  stronger  development  of  the  brain  and  by 
the  wonderful  typical  difference  in  the  design  of  both  theeitremitiep; 
because  in  man  alone  the  forward  ones  are  true  bauds,  the  backward 
never ;  whereas,  on  the  contrary,  of  the  four  hands  of  the  ape  the  pos- 
terior only  are  hands,  the  anterior  are  nothing  better  than  paws,  and 
oftentimes  without  thumb.'  (Reusch  :  'The  Bible  and  Nature,'  vol.  2, 
p.  227)." 

George. — "I  cannot  refrain  from  quoting  the  recapitulation  of 
Huxley's  doctrine  on  the  anatomical  differences  between  man  and 
apes,  given  by  Doctor  Ed.  B.  Tylo'-  in  the  'Encyclopcedia  Britannica; 
article  anthropology  :  'The  relations  are  most  readily  stated  in  con*- 
parison  with  the  gorilla,  as  on  the  whole,  the  most  anthroponaorphous 
ape.  In  the  general  -proportions  of  the  body  and  limbs  there  is  a 
marked  difference  between  the  gorilla  and  man,  which  at  once  strikes 
the  eye.  The  gorilla's  brain-case  is  smaller,  its  trunk  larger,  its  lower 
limbs  shorter,  its  upper  limbs  longer  in  proportic*Q  than  those  of  man. 
The  differences  between  a  gorilla's  skull  and  a  man's  are  truly  im- 


128 

mense.  In  the  gorilla,  the  face,  formed  largely  by  the  maseive  jaw- 
bones, predominates  over  the  brain  case  or  cranium  ;  in  the  man  these 
proportions  are  reversed.  In  man,  the  occipital  foramen,  through 
which  passes  the  spinal  cord,  is  placed  just  behind  the  centre  of  the 
base  of  the  skull,  which  is  thus  evenly  balanced  in  the  erect  posture., 
whereas  the  gorilla,  which  goes  habitually  on  all  fours,  and  whose 
skull  is  inclined  forward,  in  accordance  with  this  posture,  has  the 
foramen  further  back.  In  man  the  surface  of  the  skull  is  compara- 
tively smooth,  and  the  brow-ridges  project  but  little,  while  in  the 
gorilla,  these  ridges  overhang  the  cavernous  orbits  like  penthouse  roofs. 
The  absolute  capacity  of  the  cranium  of  the  gorilla  is  far  less  than 
that  of  man ;  the  smallest  adult  human  cranium  hardly  measuring  lees 
than  sixty-three  cubic  inches,  while  the  largest  gorilla  cranium 
measured  had  a  content  of  only  thirty- four  and  a-half  cubic  irifhes. 
The  large  proportional  size  of  the  facial  bones  and  the  great  projec- 
tion of  the  jaws,  confer  on  the  gorilla's  skull  its  small  facial  angle  and 
brutal  character,  while  its  teeth  differ  from  man's  in  relative  size  and 
number  of  fangs.  Comparing  the  length  of  the  extremities,  it  is  seen 
that  the  gorilla's  arm  is  of  enormous  length,  in  fact  about  one-sixth 
longer  than  the  spine,  whereas  a  man's  arm  is  one-fifth  shorter  than 
the  spine ;  both  hand  and  foot  are  proportionally  much  longer  in  the 
gorilla  than  in  man  ;  the  leg  does  not  so  much  difiFer.  The  vertebral 
column  of  the  gorilla  differs  from  that  of  man  in  its  curvature  and 
other  characters,  as  also  the  conformation  of  its  narrow  pelvis.  The 
hand  of  the  gorilla  corresponds  essentially  as  to  bones  and  muscles 
with  that  of  man,  but  is  clumsier  and  heavier  ;  its  thumb  is  opposable 
like  a  human  thumb,  but  is  proportionately  shorter  than  man's.  The 
foot  of  the  higher  apes,  though  often  spoken  of  as  a  hand,  is  anatomic- 
ally not  such,  but  a  prehensile  foot.' " 

Adele. — "The  conclusion,  then,  is  that  there  exists  an  im- 
mense hiatus,  a  chasm  between  man  and  the  highest  type  of  apes  as 
to  their  bodily  structure  adapted  to  their  destination,  that  (hough 
there  is  a  general  design  and  similarity  of  structure  in  detail,  every 
organ  is  differently  constructed.  Hence  the  difference  which  results 
and  which  C8n  never  make  it  plausible,  in  the  eyes  of  any  sane  man, 
that  one  descends  from  the  other.  Well,  I  had  made  up  my  mind  on 
the  subject  long  ago  when  I  saw  specimens  of  the  stuffed  gorillas  in 
the  Museum  of  Natural  History  in  Paris  and  in  the  British  Museum. 
The  face  of  those  animals  is  so  intensely  and  so  horribly  beastly,  there 
is  such  ah  accumulation  of  every  brutish  trait  in  it,  it  exhibits  such  a  a 
unmitigated  animal  look  th:it  it  sickens  me  to  recall  it,  and  I  concluded 
then,  as  I  do  now,  tliat  the  human  face  divine  could  never,  never  have 
developed  from  such  beastly  monsters." 

Doctor. — "But  to  complete  this  part  of  the  subjpct  we  must  say  a 


]'29 

word  about  the  supposed  bridge,  which  our  friends,  the  evolutionists, 
believe  to  have  found  between  man  and  the  ape.  What  is  it, 
George  ?" 

George. — "The  microcephalus." 

Adele.— "The  what  ?" 

George.— "The  man  with  the  small  head  is  the  literal  signification 
of  the  word ;  but  evolutionists  indicate  by  it  a  class  of  men  who  are  born 
idiots  and  imbecilee,  and  who  look,  in  their  outward  form,  more  like 
monkeys  than  like  men." 

Adele.— "Well,  and  is  it  really  a  bridge  between  man  and  the 
ape?" 

Doctor. — "No  ;  the  whole  class  of  such  imbeciles  and  idiots  are 
merely  a  pathological  phenomenon.  I  say  the  whole  class,  because 
there  are  microcephali — those  that  have  a  head  and  cranium  much 
smaller  than  is  ordinarily  found  in  men  ;  the  dolicocephali — the  longi- 
tudinal diameter  of  whose  cranium  is  far  larger  than  the  transversal ; 
the  brachiocephali — those  whose  cranium  is  greater  in  length  than  in 
width.  All  these  do  not  form  a  species  or  a  constant  permanent  kind 
of  beings,  medium  between  man  and  the  ape,  but  are  simply  an  occa- 
sional and  variable  phenomenon,  a  defect  or  abnormal  condition  of 
the  cranium  of  such  beings,  originating  in  some  pathological  reason, 
which  accounts  for  such  craniums  being  arrested  in  their  develop- 
ment. But  they  prove  nothing  more.  Let  us  then  conclude  with  the 
words  of  Aeby  :  'We  deny,  in  the  most  emphatic  manner,  that  there 
are  found  in  any  part  of  the  actual  creation,  regular  and  normal  forms, 
which  may  be  considered  as  a  passage  and  transition  degree  between 
man  and  the  ape.  Assuredly  the  microcephali  seem  in  many  respects 
to  confound  the  human  type  with  that  of  the  ape.  But  the  right  to  fill 
the  normal  series  of  forms  with  pathological  ones,  is  but  gratuitously 
assumed.    ('Die  Schiidel  Formen,'  p.  88.)" 

Adele. — "It  is  really  a  pity  that  when  our  poor  friends,  the  trans- 
formists,  seem  to  have  hit  something  that  presents  a  favorable  side 
towards  supporting  their  theory,  lo  and  behold,  when  you  investi- 
gate the  thing  somewhat  more  deeply,  you  find  that  our  friends  had 
been  a  little  too  sanguine,  and  as  it  is  the  case  with  such  people,  are 
very  soon  disappointed  in  their  great  expectation." 


TWENTY-FIRST  ARTICLE. 

INTELLIGENCE  AS  THE  EXCLUSIVE  FACULTY  OF  MAN— FACULTIES  COM- 
MON TO  MAN  AND  BRUTE  ANIMALS— DIFFERENCE  BETWEEN  THE 
SENSE   AND   THE   INTELLECT. 

Doctor.— "In  our  last  interview  we  laid  down  the  immense  differ- 
ence existing  between  the  physical  nature  of  man  and  that  of  the 


130 

lower  animals.  We  will  now  pass  to  the  absolutely  decisive  proof  o£ 
man's  infinite  superiority  over  the  whole  animal  kingdom.  It  lies  in 
his  possessing,  to  the  exclusion  of  brute  animals,  an  intellectual  na- 
ture. Darwin  himself  freely  admits  the  decisive  character  of  such  a 
proof :  'If  no  organic  being,  except  man,  possessed  any  mental  power, 
or  if  his  powers  had  been  wnolly  of  a  different  nature  from  those 
of  the  lower  animals,  we  should  never  have  been  able  to  convince  our- 
selves that  any  high  faculties  had  been  gradually  developed.  But  it  can 
be  shown  that  there  is  no  fundamental  difference  of  this  kind.'  ('De- 
scent,' page  35,  Humboldt  Ed.)" 

Adele. — "Then  we  must  prove  that  there  is  such  fundamental  dif- 
ference ?" 

Doctor. — "Exactly,  but  we  must,  to  attain  our  object,  proceed  very 
cautiously-." 

Adele.— "Why  ?" 

Doctor. — "Because  our  friends,  the  evolutionists,  know  absolutely 
nothing  of  intellectual  philosophy  ;  hence,  partly  through  ignorance 
and  partly  through  anxiety  to  prop  up  their  system  they  mix  up  and 
confound  the  very  simplest  notions  of  mankind.  This  renders  neces- 
sary a  wary,  careful  examination  of  everything  they  say  ;  in  their  case 
one  must  proceed  slowly,  step  by  step,  and  never  advance  until  the 
first  step  is  proved  and  found  to  be  absolutely  safe  and  sound.  Error 
lies  in  mist  and  darkness;  truth  delights  in  the  unclouded  brilliancy 
of  the  midday  sun." 

George. — "Then  how  shall  we  go  about  the  matter  ?" 

Doctor. — "There  is  but  one  method.  This  is  :  first  to  speak  of 
those  faculties  common  to  man  and  the  lower  animals,  and  to  carefully 
define  each  one  of  them  as  we  go  along  •  noting  down  their  nature, 
their  object,  and  the  extension  and  limits  of  their  operation  ;  then,  in 
the  second  place,  to  speak  of  those  faculties  and  acts  which  are  ex- 
clusively intellectual  and  belong  to  man  alone,  showing  the  difference 
between  these  and  the  former,  and  how  such  difference  is  in  quality,  in 
nature,  in  kind  and  not  in  quantity,  as  evolutioni>^t8  pretend ;  and 
finally  draw  the  conclusion  that  man  is  a  creation  ;  pn\— a  kingdom 
by  itself — infinitely  superior  to  the  animal  brute." 

Gejrge.— "That  cannot  but  be.highly  satisfactory." 

Adele. — "I  am  very  anxious  to  enter  upon  this  most  decisive 
proof." 

Doctor. — "Well,  then,  to  begin,  I  premise  that  we  are  talking  here 
of  the  highest  form  of  animal  life,  that  nearest  to  man.  These  animals, 
like  man,  are  endowed  with  sensibility,  and  therefore  with  the  power  of 
being  aflected,  modified,  by  perception  of  the  external  world.  I  pre- 
sume, Adele,  you  uuderstand  what  is  meant  by  the  power  and  faculty 
of  sensibility  or  secsation  ?" 


131 

Adele. — 'I  believe  ic  is  that  power  by  which  an  animal  fccJa  and 
perceives  material  objects — ;i?,  for  instance,  I  am  on  the  brow  of  a  hill 
at  an  early  hour  before  daybreak.  The  dawn  appears  in  all  the  mag- 
nificence and  variety  of  its  beauty  and  charm  ;  my  eyes  take  in  the 
whole  scene,  and  a  glow  of  delight  overpowers  me.  Isn't  that  feeling 
and  perceiving  external  objects?" 

George.— "To  be  sure,  and  you  have  it  to  an  exquisite  degree.' 

Adele. — "In  the  same  degree  as  your  power  of  sarcasm." 

Doctor. — "I  want  you  to  remark  that  the  faculty  of  sensation  im- 
])lies  the  internal  as  well  as  the  external  senses.  These  are  called  eo 
irasmuch  as  they  are  exercised  upon  those  external  objects  which 
oome  in  contact  with  them.  The  former  are  called  internal,  because 
they  are  exercised  upon  those  sensible  species  which  have  come  into  the 
soul  by  means  of  the  external  senses." 

Adele. — "I  don't  understand  that." 

Doctor. — "I  will  take  your  own  example.  You  perceive  and  are 
delighted  with  the  dawn  on  the  morning  you  supposed.  Well,  that 
combination  of  colors,  which  we  call  the  dawn,  is  far,  far  away  from 
you,  is  it  not?" 

Adele. — "Certainly." 

Doctor. — "And"  you  will  grant  that  the  perception  of  the  dr.wn  is 
a  kind  of  knowledge,  and  to  obtain  that  knowledge  you  must  come  in 
contact  with  the  object  of  it?  In  other  words,  the  objecc  must  enter 
in  some  way  or  other  into  your  soul  for  you  to  perceive  it  ?" 

Adele. — "I  certainly  may  grant  that  much,  that  unless  I  come  in 
contact  with  the  object  I  want  to  know,  unless  I  can  get  hold  of  it 
somehow,  unless  I  can  grasp  it,  I  cannot  by  any  means  perceive  it;  be- 
cauge  to  perceive  meaus  something  like  grasping  or  apprehending,  I 
presume?" 

Doctor. — '"But  as  you  have  conceded  that  the  object  is  far  away, 
you  cannot  surely  grasp  it,  in  the  same  manner  as  you  would  take 
hold  with  your  hand  any  object  within  your  reach.  How,  then,  axe 
you  going  to  perceive  or  apprehend  the  dawn?" 

Adele. — "I  am  sure  I  cannot  say." 

Doctor. — "Easily  enough  ;  the  dawn  makes  an  impression,  a  modi- 
ncation  on  your  sense  of  sight,  an  impression  which  is  a  representa- 
tion, an  image  of  itself;  for  v/hat  else  could  it  impress  on  you-  but  a 
likeness  and  an  imprint  of  itself?  That  impression  on  your  sense, 
representing  the  object  which  has  struck  it,  and.  which,  calling  forth 
your  vital  activity  is  by  the  latter  transmitted  to  your  soul,  and  by 
means  of  which  you  are  enabled  to  put  yourself  in  contact  with  the 
object  and  tc'  perceive  it,  id  called  aensible  species  or  image.  It  is 
about  this  that  the  internal  senses  are  exercised." 

Adele. — "I  see  the  whole  thing  now.    An  external  object  strikes 


132 

my  senses.  Say  a  piece  of  music  strikes  my  ear  and  produces  an  im- 
pression on  it  and  a  likeness  of  itself ;  this  arouses  my  vital  activity 
which  transmits  that  impression  or  likeness  to  my  soul ;  my  soul  is 
then  put  in  contact  with  the  object  and  is  enabled  to  .perceive  it. 
That  image  of  the  object  made  and  impressed  on  my  senses  upon 
which  my  internal  activity  or  senses  are  exercised,  is  called  sensible 
species  or  image." 

Doctor. — "Excellently  put.  Now  we  must  carefully  note  what  is 
the  real  object  of  the  senses.    George,  what  do  you  say  ?" 

George.— "I  never  heard  that  the  senses  perceive  or  can  perceive 
anything  else  than  external  material  objects,  and  I  presume,  of  course, 
that  such  and  no  other  must  be  their  proper  objects." 

Adele. — "But  why  could  not  the  senses  perceive  something  higher 
than  external  objects  ?" 

George. — "I  believe,  because  the  faculty  of  sensation  is  incorpor- 
ated in,  and  depends  upon,  certain  external  instruments  called  organs, 
and  cannot  go  beyond  what  can  be  apprehended  in  and  through 
them.  For  instance,  the  sensation  of  sight  is  incorporated  in  and  de 
pends  upon,  the  organ  of  the  eye,  and  cannot  go  beyond  what  the  eye 
can  take  in,  that  is,  external  material  objects.  This  is  so  true  that  if 
the  eye  is  wanting  or  destroyed  no  sensation  of  "Sight  is  any  longer 
possible.  Again,  the  sensation  transmitted  through  one  sense  cannot 
be  transmitted  through  another ;  the  eye  cannot  give  the  sensation  of 
sound  nor  the  ear  the  sensation  of  smell,  nor  this  the  sensation  of 
taste,  nor  all  these  the  sensation  of  touch.  The  faculty  then  depends 
on,  and  is  restricted  to,  what  can  be  apprehended  through  the  organs ; 
and  as  these  are  confined  to  the  particular  and  material,  no  other  can 
be  the  objects  of  sensation." 

Doctor. — "George  is  correct.  That  which  depends  on  external 
material  organs  is  necessarily  restricted  in  its  apprehension  to  that 
which  can  be  transmitted  by  and  through  the  external  organs ;  and  as 
nothing  else  but  external  material  objects  can  affect  the  external 
organs,  no  others  can  be  the  object  of  sensation.  These,  as  George 
has  already  remarked,  are  five — the  eye,  the  ear,  the  smell,  the  taste 
and  the  touch.  All  animals  then,  man  included,  are  provided  with 
five  senses  and  the  power  of  sensation  and  perception.  But  this  would 
not  b©  adequate  to  the  end  for  which  animals  were  provided  by  the 
Creator  with  the  senses.  If  the  animal  is  able  to  be  affected  and  n  odi- 
fied  by  the  external  .world  and  capable  of  perceiving  it,  this  was  given 
to  him  principally  for  the  support,  maintenance  and  development  of 
his  physical  life ;  to  know  what  may  be  conducive  to  all  those  ends 
and  what  may  be  injurious ;  to  discern  among  the  different  sensations 
and  perceptions  what  may  be  beneficial  to  his  life  and  what  may  be 
hurtful ;  what  may  give  him  a  sense  of  ease  and  well-being  and  what 


may  aflect  him  painfully,  are  the  principal  needs  of  the  animal.  These 
could  not  be  supplied  simply  by  the  live  distinct  senses  or  organs  of 
sensation  with  which  the  animal  is  endowed.  For  this  a  general  in- 
ternal sense  is  required  by  means  of  which  the  sensations  transmitted 
by  each  sense  could  be  perceived  and  apprehended  as  a  whole,  and 
the  ditlerence  felt  to  exist  between  them.  In  this  way  the  animal 
can  difccern  .ind  compare  the  diilVrent  sensations  and  turn  towards  the 
beneficial  and  the  pleasurable,  and  avoid  those  which  are  injurious  or 
painful." 

Adele. — "I  am  sure  none  can. object  to  such  a  reasonable  want  of 
animal  life." 

Doctor. — "Besides  this  general  sense,  the  animal  is  endowed  with 
fancy  and  imagination." 

Adele. — "What do  you  understand  by  that?" 

Doctor. — "That  faculty  or  power  of  the  sentient  principle  which 
retains  the  images  of  objects  perceived.  It  is  evident  that  animals  are 
endowed  with  such  fancy  or  imagination  from  the  dreams  to  which 
we  observe  them  to  be  subject.  Another  faculty  which  enables  them, 
among  the  various  sensations,  to  discern  which  of  them  is  beneficial 
to  their  well-being  and  v;hich  is  injurious,  and  to  adopt  the  one  and 
to  reject  the  other,  is  called  the  estimative  faculty.  Next  comes  the 
memory,  which  is  the  faculty  of  reproducing  past  sensations  and  per- 
ceptions, and  of  recogoiziug  them.  Finally,  they  are  possessed  of  that 
faculty  which  is  called  appetite,  or  instinct." 

"Adele. — "What  is  meant  by  that  ?" 

Doctor. — "By  appetite  we  mean  that  inclination  or  propension  by 
which  every  being  strives  to  attain  that  good  or  perfection  which 
naturally  becomes  to  it.  Such  appetite  may  be  simply  natural  or 
spontaneous ;  the  first  is  found  in  those  cieatures  which  are  incapable 
of  all  kinds  of  knowledge  and  which  geek  after  their  good  by  a  tendency 
impressed  into  them  by  the  Creator  ;  the  second  is  that  tendency  after 
good  and  perfection  proceeding  in  a  being  from  a  previous  knowledge 
of  its  own.  This  spontaneous  tendency  may  be  sensitive  and  intel- 
lectual: if  the  spontaneous  tendency  inclines  after  the  good  just  as 
it  perceives  it  but  knows  not  any  reason  why  the  thing  or  good  is 
desirable,  it  is  merely  sensitive;  if  tlie  tendency  inclines  after  the 
good  not  simply  as  it  perceives  it  but  knows  the  reason  why  that 
thing  is  befitting  and  agreeable  to  it,  it  is  an  intellectual  tendency. 
That  spontaneous  tendency  by  which  iin  animal  runs  after  a  thing 
originating  simply  in  its  perception  of  it  without  any  further  knowl- 
edge of  a  reason  why  that  good  is  agreeable  to  it,  is  called  instinct." 

Adele — "As  when  I  show  pussy  some  choice  morsel  she  is  fond 
of,  shw  rushes  after  it.  I  suppose  the  instinct  after  the  good  things  of 
this  life  ii  artused  in  her  by  the  perception  of  the  attracting  morsel." 


13i 

Doctor. — "To  condude,  we  may  take  for  granted  tbat  brute  ani- 
mals have  in  common  with  man  the  five  senses  with  their  respective 
organs  to  perceive  external  objects,  the  common  and  general  sense  to 
perceive  the  sum  of  its  perceptions,  the  imagination  to  retain  images, 
the  estimative  faculty  to  discern  between  the  beneficial  percep  ions 
and  those  which  are  injurious,  the  memory  to  reproduce  past  images 
and  to  recognize  them  when  eo  reproduced.  They  have  also  all  the 
passions  which  proceed  from  the  instinct  after  their  own  good  and 
well-being;  hence  the  passions  of  love  and  of  aversion,  of  desire,  of 
hatred,  of  hope,  of  courage,  of  fear,  of  admiration,  of  jealousy  and 
vanity,  etc.  But  here  we  must  draw  the  line  and  insist  that  they  can 
go  no  further  in  their  knowledge  and  operations ;  that  for  real,  true 
bona  fide,  intelligent  operations  they  are  absolutely  unfit,  for  the  simple 
reason  that  the  principle  which  informs  and  animates  their  physical 
nature  is  simply  a  sentient  but  not  a  rational,  intellectual  and  spir- 
itual principle." 

George. — "Then  we  ought  to  prove  the  difference  between  the 
sensitive  and  intellectuil  principles  by  clear,  distinct,  unmistakable 
mark." 

Adele. — "To  be  sure,  and  are  there  such  marks?" 

Doctor. — 'Undoubtedly,  and  clearly  and  easily  pointed  out.  All 
we  have  to  do  is  to  inquire  into  the  subject  and  the  object  of  the 
sensitive  and  intellectual  principle — in  other  words,  what  is  it  that 
feels?  what  is  it  which  intelligences?  what  does  it  feel?  what  does  it 
understand  ?  There  is,  then,  a  subjective  and  objective  difference  be- 
tween the  sense  and  the  intelligence,  and  when  we  have  pointed  it  out 
we  shall  see  the  immense  distance  between  the  sentient  principle  and 
the  intellectual.  Now  the  subjective  difference  between  the  sense  and 
the  intellect  consists  in  this,  that  the  sense  is  an  organic  facultj',  the 
intellect,  on  the  contrary,  is  inorganic.  The  objective  difference  is 
that  the  sense  can  only  apprehend  the  particular,  the  intellect  the 
universal." 

Adele. — "Will  you  please  to  explain  both?" 

Doctor. — "We  will  begin  by  the  subjective.  As  matter  is  essen- 
tially necessary  to  form  the  animal,  since  the  animal  is  composed  of 
body  and  soul,  so  the  corporal  organ  is  essentially  necessary  to  consti- 
tute the  faculty  of  sensation,  as  sensation  is  the  proper  and  exclusive 
operation  of  the  animal  as  such,  that  is,  a  being  composed  of  body  and 
soul." 

George. — "This  is  evident  from  the  fact  that  when  a  particular 
organ  is  absent  in  an  animal  the  corresponding  sensation  is  impossi- 
ble. A  blind  man  cannot  experience  the  sensation  of  eight ;  nor  a 
deaf  one  experience  that  of  hearing." 

Doctor. — "But  it  is  quite  contrary  as  to  the  intellect.     It  originates 


135 

exclusively  in  the  soul,  and  not  in  the  animal  organism.  Man  is  an 
intellectual  being,  not  as  an  animal,  but  inasmuch  as  through  the 
immateriality  of  his  spirit  he  partakes  of  the  angelic  nature.  The 
function  of  intelligence  is  not,  like  sensation,  an  act,  the  immediate 
and  proximate  cause  of  which  is  the  material  organ,  invested  and 
penetrated  by  the  soul ;  but  an  act,  the  direct  cause  of  which  is  the 
virtue  and  power  of  the  soul  alone,  without  any  intrinsic  concurrence 
or  aid  of  the  body." 

Adele. — "How  is  that  proven,  uncle?" 

Doctor.— "Because,  if  intelligence  depended  intrinsically  on  the 
organs  of  the  body,  it  would  be  subject  to  all  the  laws  concerning 
organic  faculties.  That  is  clear.  Now  every  organic  faculty  must 
follow  in  every  thing  the  alterations  of  the  organism,  so  much  so  that 
its  act  is  proportionate  to  the  particular  structure  of  the  organ  on  one 
side,  and  on  the  other,  to  a  degree  of  impression  which  is  made  upon 
it.  It  is  thus  with  sensation.  The  more  perfect  is  the  organization, 
the  more  perfect  is  the  power  of  sensation.  The  greater  and  the  more 
intense  the  impression  made  upon  it  by  external  objects  the  greater 
and  the  more  intense  the  feeling  resulting  therefrom." 
■  Adele.— "These  facts  are  certainly  beyond  dispute." 

Doctor. — "Moreover,  the  organic  faculty  is  weakened  and  wears 
out  by  use  and  exercise,  because  the  organ  upon  which  it  depends  is  en- 
feebled and  used  up  by  continued  action.  So  it  is  with  the  senses. 
Placed  in  atmosphere  full  of  odors  after  a  short  while  we  no  .longer 
perceive  the  odors ;  a  tune,  if  continued  and  monotonous,  is  no  longer 
distinguishable,  the  touch  becomes  so  accustomed  to  painful  or 
pleasurable  sensations  as  to  end  in  becoming  insensible  to  them ;  an 
excessive  light  dazzles  the  eye,  and  may  be  so  strong  as  at  once  to  de- 
stroy it ;  a  viand,  at  first  very  tasteful,  may,  by  frequent  use,  become 
indifferent  and  even  disgustful." 

^Vdele. — "I  had  never  reflected  upon  such  striking  facts  showing 
the  dependence  of  the  senses  on  the  material  organ." 

Doctor.— "But  there  is  much  more  proof  of  such  dependence.  The 
organic  faculty  cannot  reflect  upon  itself  nor  raise  itself  above  the  wants 
of  the  organism,  and  much  less  act  contrary  to  its  tendencies.  Mark 
well,  Adele,  I  say  in  the  first  place,  an  organic  faculty  cannot  reflect 
upon  itself,  because  an  organic  faculty  not  beii:g  able  to  act  without 
the  concurrence  of  the  organism,  cannot  bend  over,  so  to  speak,  or 
return  upon  itself  without  the  organ  doing  the  same;  and  everybody 
knows  this  to  be  impossible." 

Adele.— "Why  ?" 

Doctor.— "Because  that  which  is  extended  cannot  return  except 
upon  an  extended  body  different  from  itself.  Suppose  I  bend  a  bar 
of  iron ;  that  part  of  the  bar  which  I  bend  is  difierent   from  the  one 


136 

upon  which  I  bend  it.  Hence  tjie  reason  why  the  eye  cannot  set  its 
own  vision,  nor  any  other  sense  perceive  the  very  act  by  which  it  per- 
ceives. I  said,  moreover,  that  the  organic  faculty  cannot  act  beyond 
or  contrary  to  the  tendencies  of  the  organism.  The  reason  of  this  is 
that  no  faculty  can  go  beyond  or  contrary  to  the  subject  of  which  it 
is  an  instrument." 

George. — "How  gloriously  different  it  is  with  the  intellect. 
Though  it  requires  the  senses  properly  disposed  and  arranged  to  draw 
ideas  from  them,  yet,  except  that  single  condition,  all  the  rest  takes 
place  in  the  inverse  ratio  of  the  organic  process. 

Adele. — "As  for  instance  ?" 

George.— "If  the  sensation  is  in  proportion  to  the  impression 
made  on  the  organs,  the  very  opposite  occurs  in  the  acts  of  the  intel- 
lect ;  its  meditations  are  higher,  more  sublime,  more  profound,  in 
proportion  as  we  separate  ourselves  and  keep  away  from  external 
impression.  In  sensation  the  faculty  is  enfeebled  and  used  up  by  the 
weakening  and  wearing  out  of  the  organ.  The  intellect,  on  the  con- 
trary, grows  stronger  and  clearer  and  sharper  and  more  sagacious  as 
the  organs  are  enfeebled  by  age.  Continual  and  uniform  use  wears 
out  the  senses  and  oftentimes  destroys  them.  The  intellect  expands, 
widens,  grows  more  powerful,  waxes  deeper  under  a  continual  exer- 
cise and  repetition  of  the  acts,  and  instead  of  growing  weary  and 
disgusted  like  the  senses,  it  derives  greater  pleasure,  keener  delight, 
more  exquisite  attraction  as  it  continues  to  plunge  deeper  and  deeper 
into  the  investigation  of  truth.  The  more  it  is  exercised  in  the  facul- 
ties of  apprehension,  of  judgment,  of  reasoning,  ,the  more  it  feels 
capable  to  repeat  these  acts  with  rapidity  and  vigor.  An  idea  strength- 
ens it  in  proportion  to  its  loftiness  and  sublimity,  and  the  deeper  it 
descends  to  grasp  the  very  essence  and  nature  of  the  object,  and  to 
sound  its  utmost  depths  the  more  vigorous  it  comes  out  of  such 
abyss." 

Doctor.— "Nor  do  we  stop  at  that.  The  sense  cannot  reflect  upon 
itself.  The  intellect,  on  the  contrary,  can  easily  turn  upon  itself,  look 
over  its  own  acts,  and,  as  it  were,  penetrate  into  itself,  going  down  to 
the  very  bottom  of  the  being  in  which  the  act  takes  its  rise.  The  in- 
tellect understands  that;  it  understands  that  it  can  think  over  its  own 
acts  and  attribute  the  action  to  itself." 

^(Jele. — "I  am  delighted  to  perceive  such  grand  and  immense 
differences  between  the  senses  and  the  intellect." 

Doctor.— "Let  us  now  speak  of  the  difference  which  exists  be- 
tween the  senses  and  the  intellect  in  regard  of  their  respective  objects. 
The  senses,  by  the  very  fact  of  being  organic  faculties  in  their  knowl- 
edge cannot  go  beyond  the  material  order,  and  even  in  this  cannot 
perceive  but  what  is  concrete  and  individual,  capable  k)  impress  the 


137 

senses,  and  to  iniluence  them  in  proportion  to  the  amount  of  the  im- 
pression. The  eye  cannot  perceive  but  what  is  luminous,  the  ear  can- 
not be  affected  but  by  sound,  the  smell  by  odors.  The  estimative 
faculty  itself,  though  supreme  among  the  internal  faculties,  is  not  ex- 
ercised except  upon  concrete  and  individual  things  relative  to  the 
material  wants  of  the  sentient  subject.  Hence,  the  reason  why  the 
sense  is  called  passive,  not  because  it  docs  not  imply  an  action  in  the 
sensitive  subject,  otherwise  sensation  would  no  longer  be  a  vital  act, 
but  because  the  action  which  it  exercises  is  determined  and  measured 
by  the  impression  of  the  object  and  the  state  of  the  organism.  The 
difference  in  this  regard  between  the  intellect  and  the  senses  is  im- 
mense. We  may  regard  the  intellect  either  as  perceiving  the  first  and 
highest  truths  or  principles,  or  as  reasoning  upon  them,  or  as  reflect- 
ing upon  itself  by  way  of  consciousness.  In  all  these  regards  we  find 
that  no  limits  whatever  are  set  to  the  order  of  its  operations.  Its 
adequate  object  is  truth,  as  truth  in  all  the  extension  of  its  boundless 
amplitude.  In  fact,  the  intellect,  by  means  of  reasoning,  can  exercise 
itself  upon  anything  which  presents  the  reason  of  being,  and  which 
may  in  some  way  be  distinguished  from  nothing.  Thus,  it  contem- 
plates not  only  bodies  but  spirits,  not  onlj''  the  objects  of  thought  but 
the  acts  of  the  same,  not  only  things  which  exist  but  those  which  are 
possible,  not  only  the  accidents  but  the  substance,  not  only  effects  but 
causes,  not  only  the  finite  but  the  infinite.  Every  thing,  which  is 
either  real  or  ideal,  objective  or  subjective,  conditional  or  absolute, 
evident  in  itself,  or  proved  to  be  so  by  reasoning,  can  be  the  object  of 
the  intellect.  And  if  we  consider  intelligence  not  as  a  reasoning 
faculty,  but  inasmuch  as  it  rests  in  the  first  conceptions  or  ideas  of 
the  mind,  even  in  this  respect  the  universality  of  its  object  reveals  its 
intrinsic  independence  of  the  organs.  Because  it  does  not,  as  the 
sense,  pause  at  the  mere  determinate,  concrete  fact,  but  apprehends 
the  essence  and  nature  of  it,  abstracting  from  it  all  material  condi- 
tions of  time,  place  and  other  individual  adjuncts.  The  sense  per- 
ceives an  extended  body,  the  intellect  conceives  the  abstract  reason  of 
extension,  the  sense  sees  a  plant,  the  intellect  conceives  life,  the  sense 
apprehends  a  new  phenomenon,  the  intellect  endeavors  to  grasp  the 
reason  of  that  novelty,  and  hence  the  necessity  of  a  cause  to  account 
for  that  new  existence." 

Adele. — "I  see  very  clearly  the  immense,  impassable  difiference 
between  the  sense  and  the  intellect.  First,  the  subject  of  the  sense: 
that  which  is  sentient  in  an  organic  power,  subject  to  and  dependent 
upon  the  material  organism  and  subject  to  all  the  laws,  states,  altera- 
tions and  vicissitudes  of  the  organism.  The  object  of  the  sentient 
power  is  the  material,  the  concrete  and  the  particular.  The  subject, 
or  the  intellectual  power,  is  inorganic  and  independent  of  the  mate- 


133 

rial  organism,  and  therefore  not  only  not  subject  to  its  laws,  atates, 
changes,  alterations,  or  vicissitudes,  but  acting  in  a  contrary  sense. 
The  object  of  the  intellect  is  being  truth  universally  considered  ia 
every  sense  and  under  every  respect  and  every  relation.  The  conse- 
quence is,  therefore,  that  there  is  an  insurmountable  bridge  between 
the  sense  and  the  intellect." 

Doctor. — "We  must  say  a  word  about  the  difTerence  which  arises 
from  the  tendency  of  the  sentient  beings  and  the  intellectual.  The 
apprehension  of  the  former  being  confined  to  the  material  and  indi- 
vidual, is  also  limited  in  its  tendency,  and  craves  and  can  crave  but 
what  is  limited,  concrete,  particular,  and  hence  is  necessary,  blind, 
uniform  and  unchangeable.  The  apprehension  of  the  intellect  being 
the  truth  in  a  universal  sense,  the  infinite,  the  absolute,  the  tendency 
resulting  from  it  is  also  boundless  and  unshackled  in  its  aspiration 
and  tendency,  and  no  finite  being  or  obj'ect  can  fix  and  determine  it ; 
hence  it  is  free,  variable,  progressive,  and  the  universal  good  and  fh> 
infinite  alone  can  tie  it  down  or  confine,  or  nerprvitnto  it  " 

Adele.— "Having  seen  what  faculties  brute  animals  have  in  com- 
mon with  man,  and  having  fully  discussed  the  difierences  which  pass 
between  the  senses  and  the  intellect,  I  am  very  anxious  to  find  out 
whether  brute  animals  have  any  kind  of  intellectual  power,  and  if 
not,  how  is  the  absence  of  such  power  proved?" 

Doctor.— "I  am  afraid  you  will  have  to  restrain  your  curiosity  till 
our  next  conversation.  I  see  George  here  getting  impatient,  and  I 
must  myself  own  that  we  have  long  trespassed  our  usual  limits." 


TWENTY-SECOND  ARTICLE. 

ARE    BRUTE   ANIMALS   ENEOWED   WITH   ANY   SORT  OF   INTELLECT? 

Adele. — "Well,  I  have  restrained  my  impatience  since  our  last 
conversation  and  I  beg  to  again  put  the  question:  Are  brute  animals 
endowed  with  reason?  For  I  am  sure,  what  was  said  about  the  im- 
mense difference  between  the  senses  and  the  intellect  was,  by  way  of 
preimble  to  the  real  argument  which  follows  from  it,  and  which 
might  be  put  as  follows:  there  is  an  immense  difference  in  nature 
between  the  senses  and  the  intellect;  hence  a  sentient  principle  and 
an  intellectual  principle  are,  in  nature,  widely  different  from  each 
other.  This  will  apply  to  brute  animals  if  it  is  shown  that  they  are 
simply  sentient  beings;  and  if,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  demonstrated, 
that  man  alone,  in  the  whole  animal  kingdom,  is  gifted  with  reason 
and  intellect.  Hence,  the  question  recurs— are  brute  animals  endowed 
with  any  kind  of  reason  ?    If  they  are,  they  differ  from  man  only  as  to 


]3'J 

the  quautity  of  their  reasoniug  power.  If  they  are  vx.t,  of  course  they 
difler  from  man  in  nature  and  kind,  and,  therefore,  Ihe  latter  cannot 
have  developed  from  them."' 

Doctor. — "You  are  right,  Adele  ;  the  whole  question,  after  having 
demonstrated  the  essential  and  radical  difierence  between  the  senses 
and  the  intellect  now  hinges  on  the  icquiry — are  brute  animals  en- 
dowed with  reason,  or  are  they  merely  sentient  beings  and  nothing 
more.     What  do  you  say,  George  ?" 

George— "Evoluti:iii*^s  contend  that  brute  animals  are  endowed 
with  a  certain  amount  of  intellect  and  reasoning  power.  To  prove 
this,  they  point  to  the  great  skill  and  masterly  ability  which  is  apparent 
in  the  actions  and  works  of  many  animals.  Not  to  speak,  for  instance, 
of  the  extraordinary  art  shov^n  by  bees  and  the  previsions  and  pre 
cautions  of  ants,  who  can  fail  to  discover  a  certain  amount  of  intelli- 
gence in  the  animals  nearer  to  man  ?  Does  not  the  dog  exhibit  great 
judgment  in  the  services  he  renders  his  master  ?  Does  he  not  demon- 
strate his  power  of  reasoning  when,  from  external  signs,  he  argues  his 
master's  anger,  or  his  good  will,  his  desire  or  his  command  ?" 

Adele.— "Take  the  case,  for  instance,  of  the  dog  belonging  to  the 
Parisian  shoeblack,  mentioned  in  Chamber's  Miscellany,  who  used  to 
cover  himself  with  mud  and  lie  in  wait  for  the  appearance  of  any  gen- 
tleman with  polished  shoes,  and  manage  to  dirt  them  in  order  to  make 
work  for  his  master;  or  of  the  other,  who  followed  for  a  whole  day  a 
gentleman  who  had  put  in  his  vest  pocket  a  coin  belonging  to  his 
master ;  having  never  lost  sight  of  the  gentleman  till  the  latter  had 
taken  off  his  vest  previously  to  his  going  to  rest,  he  managed  to  steal 
both  vest  and  coin,  and  ran  back  to  his  master  with  the  booty." 

Doctor. — "To  avoid  confusion  we  will  take  up  all  these  things  one 
after  the  other.  And,  in  the  first  place.  Catholic  philosophy  is  not 
afraid  to  admit  that  brute  animals  have  some  kind  of  incipient,  imper- 
fect reflection ;  because  as  they  are  possessed  of  the  general  and  com- 
mon sense,  they  must  be  aware  that  they  experience  a  certain  sensa- 
tion; for,  as  St.  Augustine  remarks,  'the  animal  would  not  move  to 
seek  for  something  or  to  avoid  something  else,  if  he  did  not  know 
that  he  has  sensations.'  Again,  Catholic  philosophy  may  freely  grant 
that  brute  animals  may  form  judgments;  because  th(y  are  able,  by 
means  of  their  senses,  to  judge  and  to  discern  what  object  is  proper 
to  each  sense,  and,  by  means  of  the  estimative  faculty,  to  decide  which 
things  are  beneficial  and  which  injurious,  and  to  run  after  the  former 
and  to  shrink  from  the  latter ;  but  such  judgments  are  not  compara- 
tive, but  simply  instinctive  and  imprinted  in  them  by  the  Creator." 

A.dele.— "What  do  you  mean,  uncle,  that  such  judgments  are  not 
comparative  but  instinctive  ?" 

Doctor.— "I    mean  that   they  are  not  formed  after  a   previous 


140 

and  clear  knowledge  and  fall  apprehension  and  meaning  of  the 
terms  of  the  judgment  and  the  perception  of  their  agreement  or 
disagreement.  For  instance,  you  offer  a  dog  a  piece  of  decayed  and 
putrid  meat;  he  rushes  towards,  smells  it,  and  goes  away  from  it  with 
signs  of  annoyance  and  disgust.  There  is  a  judgment.  But  is  that 
judgment  the  effect  of  comparison  ?  Has  the  dog,  after  perceiving  th&t 
decayed  matter  by  means  of  his  sense  of  smell,  compared  it  with  his 
welfare  and  the  good  of  his  health  and  pronounced  it  injurious? 
Certainly  not;  he  has  followed  the  tendency  implanted  in  it  by  the 
Creator  to  run  from  certain  things  which  his  senses  feel  an  aversion 
from." 

George.— "Yes,  but  how  is  it  proven  that  such  judgments  are  the 
eflect  of  instinct  and  not  comparison  ?" 

Doctor. — '•!  was  elucidating  the  terms  for  Adele.  The  proofs  shall  be 
given,  and  in  abundance,  that  such  judgments  and  other  acts  in  brute 
animals  are  merely  the  result  of  their  natural  instinct," 

Adele. — "You  say,  then,  all  these  powers  we  have  admitted  in 
brute  animals,  such  as  an  eminent  and  wonderful  skill  in  their  acts,  re- 
flection, judgment,  reasoning,  only  proceed  from  instinct  and  not  from 
the  intellect  ?" 

Doctor. — "Certainly,  and  we  shall  be  convinced  of  it  by  studying 
the  real  characters  of  such  acts  and  powers.  In  the  first  place,  the  signs 
of  the  greatest  and  most  wonderful  skill  and  ingenuity  are  manifested 
by  animals  of  the  most  inferior  class,  such  as  insects.  The  works  of 
these  tiny  litde  beasts  are  often  so  fine  and  constructed  with  such  skill 
and  mastery,  that  if  they  proceeded  from  intelligence  they  would  sup- 
pose an  intelligence  much  superior  to  man's,  and  we  would  have  to 
draw  this  consequence  from  their  works,  that  insects  are  provided 
with  an  intellect  far,  far  above  that  of  man.  Now  what  madman  would 
entertain  such  an  idea  for  a  moment  ?  In  the  second  place,  it  should  be 
observed  that  the  animal  shows  itself  industrious  and  skillful  only  in 
a  given,  definite  and  particular  order  of  things,  according  to  the  species 
to  which  it  belongs  ;  as  to  all  other  things,  and  to  any  different  order 
of  work  or  acts  it  is  absolutely  helpless,  unfit  and  incapable.  Now, 
how  could  skill  and  reason,  good  enough  for  one  kind  of  actions,  be 
absolutely  and  utterly  good  for  nothing  for  ail  other  kind  and  order 
of  woiks.  Thirdly,  the  very  skillful  works  and  the  sagacity  and  ex- 
pertnees  which  animals  employ  on  them,  and  which  oftentimes  imply 
and  involve  the  most  difficult  calculation  of  mathematics,  and  the 
most  profound  acquaintance  with  natural  laws  are  unaertaken  by 
them  since  the  very  first  days  of  their  existence,  and  are  completed 
without  failure.  There  is  no  apprenticeship  with  them  ;  there  is  no 
gradation  or  steps  to  be  observed ;  their  youngest  among  them  jump  at 
once  into  those  works  and  begin,  prosecute  and  accomplish  them  with 


141 

the  same  skill,  confideuce  and  unhesitating  tact  and  dexterity  as  the  old- 
est and  the  most  experienced  of  their  kind.  This  requires  no  proof ; 
the  youngest  bee,  no  sooner  is  it  formed,  undertakes  a  piece  of  work 
as  the  most  advanced  and  knowing  bfe  in  the  aviary,  and  executes 
and  terminates  it  with  the  same  precision  as  the  aged  one.  Say  the 
same  of  castors,  in  the  structure  of  their  ingenious  huts;  of  birds,  in 
the  admirable  construction  of  their  nests.  Now,  who  can  fail  to  see 
that  if  all  this  art,  ingenuity,  skill,  dexterity  and  science  were  the  pro- 
duct of  reason  and  intelligence,  it  could  not  be  pc^ssessed  by  animals 
at  the  dawn  of  life;  they  could  only  acquire  it  as  man  does,  step  by 
step,  beginning  from  the  lowest  and  the  easiest,  and  advancing  and 
progressing  gradually,  and  not  until  a  long  time,  and  after  many  trials 
and  numberless  failures  could  they  attain  that  unhesitating 
dexterity  and  perfection  which  they  manifest  so  early?  The 
consequence  is  evident,  that  what  they  do  is  the  result  and 
the  efiort  of  the  unerring  instinct  planted  into  them  by  the 
Almighty.  Again,  if  such  operations  wcrodirecfed  by  reason,  how  is  it 
that  they  are  restricted  to  one  definite  and  determinate  thing,  not  only 
as  to  the  subject  and  the  object  of  them,  but  also  as  to  the  particular 
mode  of  performing  them  in  spite  of  chac/ge  of  circumstances — in 
spite  of  the  failure  of  the  end  for  which  they  are  intended,  and  for 
which  they  are  undertaken  ?  Thus  the  spider  is  as  careful  to  use  all 
the  precautions  to  catch  a  fly  when  the  latter  can  easily  escape  from 
it,  as  when,  being  wingless,  it  cannot  move  and  is  at  its  mercy;  the 
spider,  perfectly  unconscious  of  the  latter  circumstance,  sets  its  trap 
with  as  much  cunning  and  wariness  and  waits  for  the  result.  Tht 
squirrel  gathers  and  husbands  its  provisions,  hiding  the  superfluous 
with  the  same  care  and  industry  in  places  where  it  may  feel  the  want 
of  them,  as  well  as  in  places  where  abundance  and  plenty  exclude  all 
danger  of  famine.  I  might  multiply  examples,  but  it  all  comes  lo 
the  same  conclueion.  All  these  operations  are  the  eflfect  ol  natural, 
blind  instinct  of  animals,  and  not  of  reasoning  and  free  choice. 
'Animals,  different  from  man,'  says  St.  Thomas, '  have  no  intellect. 
This  is  clear  from  the  fact  that  they  perform,  not  diflerent  or  contrary 
actions  and  works,  as  is  the  case  of  those  who  are  endowed  with  intel- 
ligence; but  perform,  under  the  impulse  of  nature,  certain  definite 
actions  uniform  in  all  the  individuals  of  the  same  species!'" 

George.— "These  proofs  certninly  cannot  be  gainsaid.  If  brute 
animals  were  intelligent,  they  would  show  that  faculty  not  merely  in 
one  given,  hackneyed  kind  of  operation,  no  matter  how  skillfully 
performed,  but  in  others  of  diflerent  kind.  Their  reason  would  nc  t 
cease  there  and  be  good  for  nothing  for  all  else.  A  man  most  skillful 
in  one  given  art  or  science,  gives  eviderjce  of  his  reason  in  other 
things.    If  brute  animals  were  endowed  with  re?son,  like  man,  they 


142 

would  have  to  learn  gradually,  and  not  be  able  to  peiform  the  most 
difficult  and  perfect  works  without  learning  or  training.  If  they 
possessed  reason  and  intellect,  they  would,  like  man,  accommodate 
themselves  to  circumstance  of  time  and  place,  and  would  not  go  on 
blindly  to  perform  exactly  in  the  same  manner,  and  with  the  same 
zeal,  earnestness  and  vigor  operations  and  acts  become  utterly  useless 
because  the  end  for  which  they  were  necessary  had  failed.  They  act 
then  by  instinct,  that  is,  without  reason,  spontaneously,  naturally, 
blindly  and  uniformly,  without  freedom  or  choice. 

Adele. — "Very  good,  Mr.  George.  It  is  clear  that  you  have  the 
happy  faculty  of  recapitulating  as  well  as  some  one  else." 

Doctor. — "In  the  characters,  so  far  described,  of  the  actions  and 
operations  of  brute  animals,  originates  the  most  decisive  and  convinc- 
ing argument  of  their  want  of  reason  and  intellect.  .It  is  the  absolute 
and  total  absence  of  progress  in  everything  proceeding  from,  or  con- 
cerning, them.  Brutes  are  essentially  stationary,  either  in  their  specific 
ur  individual  capacity.  One  can  foretell  with  absolute  certainty  that, 
for  instance,  the  silk- worm  will  work  out  its  thread  a  century  hence, 
in  the  same  manner  as  its  fellow  worms  of  the  nineteenth  century  are 
doing  now,  in  utter  disregard  of  the  accumulated  experience  of 
years  or  opportunity  of  improvements  and  perfection.  Say  the  same 
of  other  animals.  When  one  of  them  is  born  you  can  at  once  de- 
termine to  what  peculiar  industry  it  will  apply  itself,  and  the  degrees 
of  perfection  it  will  attain.  Now,  is  this  the  manner  of  action  among 
beings  endowed  with  intellect  ?  Let  one  compare  a  child  of  the 
human  species  with  an  adult  and  seethe  difiference  between  them; 
It t  one  bring  face  to  face  a  barbarous  nation  with  a  civilized  one.  a 
nation  at  the  dawn  of  its  existence  with  the  same  fully  developed  and 
arrived  at  the  summit  of  progress  and  advancement.  In  the  brute,  on 
the  contrary,  there  is  a  perfect  uniformity,  nay,  monotony.  The 
s.me  skill,  the  same  dexterity,  the  same  act  in  the  new  born  as  well  as 
ill  the  old ;  in  the  novice  as  well  as  in  the  most  experienced;  in  the 
suicient  generations  as  well  as  in  modern  ones.  The  evident  conse- 
quence of  which  is  that  they  are  incapable  of  universal  conception, 
aad  therefore  wanting  in  intellect." 

Adele.— "No  matter,  then,  how  singular  and  wonderful  may  ap- 
pear the  acts  of  certain  animals ;  no  matter  how  great  may  be  the 
tigi.s  they  give  of  reflection,  of  judgment,  of  reasoning,  all  these  mus-t 
l.i;  uLtributed  to  natural  instinct;  for  the  reason  that  they  never  go 
Vieyond  a  particular  and  restricted  circle  of  things,  are  always  uni- 
form in  the  species  and  in  individuals,  and  are  ever  exercised  upon 
particular  and  concrete  objects,  and  are  devoid  of  the  least  imaginable 
progress  and  advancement." 

Doctor.— "This  conclusion  becomes  the  more  apparent  from  the 


143 

fact  that  brute  animals  are  absolutely  wanting  in  the  power  o/  abstrac- 
tion and  generalization." 

George.— "I  beg  pardon,  doctor.  Darwin  says  they  have,  and  at- 
tercpts  to  prove  it." 

Doctor. — "Let  us  hear." 

George.—"  'If  one  may  judge  from  the  articles  published  lately 
great  stress  seems  to  be  laid  on  the  supposed  entire  absence  in  ani- 
mals of  the  power  of  abstraction  ami  of  forming  general  concepts. 
But  when  a  dog  sees  another  dog  at  a  distance  it  is  often  clear  that 
he  perceives  that  it  is  a  dog  in  the  abstract ;  for  when  it  gets  nearer 
his  whole  manner  suddenly  changes  if  the  other  dog  be  a  friend' 
('Descent  of  Man,'  p.  45)." 

Doctor. — "And  has  Darwin  no  other  proof  to  allege  for  the  power 
of  abstraction  in  animals  ?"' 

George.— "None  other  that  I  can  find." 

Doctor. — "Well,  almost  every  word  in  the  passage  quoted  is  a 
most  laughable  absurdity  and  puts  in  the  most  unenviable  light  the 
coloscal  ignorance  on  the  part  of  Darwin  of  the  simplest  and  com- 
monest notions  of  metaphysics.  It  would  be  impossible,  if  it  did  not 
stare  one  in  the  face,  to  imagine  an  educated  miin,  .a  scientist  who 
lindertakes  a  comparison  between  man's  intellectual  powers  and 
those  of  the  brure  creation,  to  be  so  utterly  _/<yu  e  of  true  pniiosopby, 
so  childishly  idiotic  as  to  spout  out,  without  shame  or  compunction, 
without  suspecting  bis  supine  ignorance,  such  absurd  nonsense  as 
your  great  Darwin.  I  remember  that  Huxley,  in  a  certain  essay  on 
evolution,  is  highly  indignant  at  Professor  Flourens  of  the  French 
Academy,  because  the  latter  handles  Darwin's  ignorance  of  metaphy- 
sical ideas  with  anything  but  gloved  hands.  Huxley  waxes  indignant, 
and,  climbing  a  bigh  horse,  begs  to  tell  M.  Flourens  that  they,  in 
England,  are  not  accustomed  to  see  their  best  scientists  treated  in 
such  a  cavalier  manner.  But  when  their  best  scientists  give  such 
evident  proof  of  the  sheerest  and  most  astonishing  ignorance  of  true 
philosophy  and  are  by  no  means  loath,  in  spite  of  such  ignorance,  to 
proclaim  ex  cathedra  the  most  disgustful  absurdities  to  deceive  the 
simple,  I  beg  to  say  that  no  amount  of  contempt  or  contumely  can  do 
justice  to  such  unwarrantable,  pitiful  presumption.  Let  us  come  to 
the  point  now.  'When  a  dog,'  he  says,  'sees  another  dog  at  a  distance, 
it  is  often  clear  that  it  is  a  dog  in  the  abstract.'  What  is  clear  in 
the  whole  matter  is  that  Darwin  has  not  the  remotest  notion  of  what 
abstraction  is.  He  thinks  that  abstraction  means  to  j.erceive  vaguely, 
indistinctly  and  confusedly.  Blunder  No.  1  :  'It  is  often  clear  that  it 
is  a  dog  in  the  abstract.'  Blunder  No.  2,  much  worse  than  the  first. 
The  poor  man  imagines  that  abstract  things  walk  and  disport  them- 
selves as  he  has  done  at  the  expense  of  his  readers  and  worshipper;- 


144 

in  all  his  ■works,  and  confounds  a  fact  and  an  individual  existence 
with  an  idea." 

Adele. — "But,  uncle,  please  to  explain  to  me  as  clearly  as  possible 
what  ia  meant  by  the  power  of  abstraction  and  generalization?" 

Doctor. — "Well,  please  to  follow  me.  An  idea  is  a  conception  of 
a  thing  by  our  mind.  It  may  be  individual  abstract  and  universal. 
An  individual  idea  is  the  conception  of  a  thing  as  it  really  exists  in 
nature  ;  hence  the  conception  of  a  man,  a  horse,  a  tree,  a  pebble,  is  an 
individual  idea,  because  it  is  the  perception  of  objects  just  as  they 
exist  in  nature." 

Adele. — "I  understand  that  very  well." 

Doctor. — "You  understand  also,  I  hope,  that  things  as  they  exist 
in  nature  are  composed  of  different  elements,  or  parts,  as  we  might  call 
them  for  the  sake  of  clearness;  they  are  made  up  of  essence  and 
nature,  of  substance,  of  properties  and  qualities  and  modifications. 
Take,  for  instance,  an  oak  tree.  It  must  have  the  essence  and  nature 
of  a  tree,  otherwise  you  could  not  classify  it  among  trees;  it  has  the 
substance  of  a  tree,  because  it  is  a  real  something  and  truly  existing ;  it 
has  also  certain  peculiar  properties  which  oblige  jou  to  classify  it  in  the 
family  of  oaks  and  to  distinguish  it  from  other  trees, and  finally  it  has 
some  individual  qualities  which  distinguish  that  particular  oak  from 
all  other  oak  trees,  say,  for  instance,  peculiar  size  and  branches  and 
age,  etc." 

Adele. — "I  perceive  all  that  perfectly." 

Doctor. — "Very  well,  then,  when  you  conceive  or  apprehend  that 
oak  tree  just  as  it  exists  in  nature,  you  have  an  individual  idea.  But 
suppose  that  in  your  mind  you  separate  things;  suppose  that  you 
want  to  fix  your  mind  not  on  the  whole  tree,  but  on  the  nature  and 
essence  of  that  tree ;  suppose  you  want  to  conceive  what  is  it  that 
makes  it  a  tree  ?  What  do  you  do  then  ?  You  separate  or  abstract. 
You  first  eliminate  from  that  oak  tree  before  you  all  its  individual 
qualities  and  peculiarities  of  size,  branches,  age,  and  so  forth,  that 
make  it  such  and  such  an  oak.  When  you  take  away  and  eliminate 
from  it  those  properties  that  classify  it  among  the  family  of  oaks, 
what  have  you  left  now?  Simply  a  tree.  And  what  is  a  tree?  Alivicg 
being.  You  have  then  gone  from  abstraction  to  abstraction,  and  attained 
your  object.  You  have  abstracted  or  taken  away  from  that  individual 
oak,  firat,  all  those  qualities  that  made  it  such  an  oak,  and  distin- 
guished it  from  all  other  oaks;  then  you  have  abstracted  from  it  all 
I  hose  properties  which  make  it  an  oak,  and  distinguish  it  from  all 
(Aher  trees,  and  finally  you  have  arrived  at  the  idea  of  a  tree.  Arrived 
tliere,  you  have  asked  what  is  a  tree  ?  and  you  have  found  that  it  is  a 
living  being.  Step  after  step,  and  abstraction  after  abstraction,  you 
have    arrived    at  that   which  you  sought,  the  nature  and  essence  of 


145 

a  tree,  which  is  to  be  simply  a  living  being.  An  abstract  idea,  there- 
fore, is  the  conception  of  the  essence  and  nature  of  a  thing  stripped 
ol  individual  conditions  and  peculiarities  in  which  the  thing  appears 
in  nature.  The  faculty  of  performing  that  elimination  and  strip- 
ping is  caTled  the  faculty  ©f  abstraction." 

Adele. — "I  conceive  very  clearly  what  is  the  power  of  abstraction. 
But  what  is  the  power  of  generalization  ?'' 

Doctor. — "Suppose  that  besides  the  oak,  you  have  before  you  the 
maple,  the  pine,  the  fir  tree,  and  so  forth.  You  strip  each  of  all  those 
peculiarities  that  make  each  a  distinct  tree  among  their  own  family, 
then  take  away  those  properties  which  make  them  such  and  such  a 
family  of  trees,  and  you  come  to  the  idea  of  the  nature  and  essence 
of  a  tree  ;  and  as  you  see  that  that  conception  applies  to  all  of  them,  as 
trees,  you  discover  that  the  idea,  essence  and  nature  of  a  thing  isagen- 
eral  idea  applicable  to  all  such  as  exhibit  that  same  nature  and  essenc  . 
Hence  the  power  of  abstraction  bends  into  that  of  generalization." 

Adele. — "I  see." 

Doctor. — "Let  us  take  another  example  of  the  power  of  abstrac- 
tion and  generalization.  Suppose  I  say,  Mr.  Soand-So  is  a  just  man, 
what  do  you  understand  by  that  ?" 

Adele. — "I  understand  that  he  is  careful  to  give  every  one  his  due."' 

Doctor. — "And  to  give  every  one  his  due  is  certainly  a  good  and 
moral  quality  to  have,  is  it  not  ?" 

Adele.— "Certainly." 

Doctor. — "Well,  consider  that  moral  quality  of  giving  every  one 
his  due,  not  as  embodied  and  exercised  in  Mr.  So-and-So,  but  in  itself, 
separately  from,  and  independently  of  him,  and  every  other  individ- 
ual person,  what  would  you  call  it  ?" 

Adele. — "I  presume  you  would  call  it  justice,  and  the  idea  of 
justice  would  be  the  conception  of  giving  every  one  his  due,  not  as 
realiaed  in  this  or  that  individual,  but  in  the  abstract,  and  in  itself." 

Doctor. — "And  would  that  conception  be  applicable  to  any  act  of 
man  rendering  every  one  his  due  ?" 

Adele. — "To  be  sure." 

Doctor — ''Or  would  that  conception  be  subject  to  any  change,  or 
time  and  place,  or  of  any  other  circumstance?" 

Adele. — "Certainly  not,  justice  would  always  mean  the  giving 
every  one  his  due,  and  would  be  applicable  to  any  one  at  all  times  and 
in  all  places." 

Doctor. — "Then,  that  abstract  idea  is  also  universal  and  unchange- 
able in  time  and  place." 

Adele. — "Without  doubt." 

Doctor. — "Then,  you  have  again  the  ideas  of  an  example  of  abstrac- 
tion and  of  generalization,  and  of  the  power  of  doing  both." 


146 

Adele. — "I  perceive  the  whole  thing." 

Doctor. —  'George,  passing  over  the  nonsense  of  Mr.  Darwin,  do  you 
know  of  any  argument  or  proof  alleged  by  any  other  scientist  to  show 
that  brute  animals  have  the  power  of  abstraction  and  generalization , 
and  consequently  can  form  abstract  and  general  ideas  ?' 

George. — "As  far  as  forming  abstract  ideas,  I  know  nothing  more  than 
what  is  said  by  Darwin.  With  regsrd  to  the  power  of  generalization 
and  the  forming  of  general  ideas,  Darwin  attempts  to  prove  it.  When 
I  say  to  my  terrier  in  an  eager  voice :  'Hi,  hi,  where  is  it  ?'  she  at  once 
takes  it  as  a  sign  that  something  is  to  be  hunted,  and  generally  first 
looks  quickly  all  around,  and  then  rushes  into  the  nearest  thicket  to 
scent  for  any  game,  but  finding  nothing  she  looks  up  into  any  neigh- 
boring tree  for  a  erjuirrel.  Now,  do  not  these  actions  clearly  show  that 
she  had  in  her  mind  a  general  idea  or  concept  that  some  animal  is  to 
be  discovered  and  hunted." 

Doctor. — "Let  me  ofier  my  best  compliments  to  Darwin  and  to  all 
his  blind  worshippers  on  this  nesv  discovery;  that  a  particular  state- 
ment, something  to  be  done  in  a  particular  case,  as  that  some  animal  is 
to  be  discovered  and  hunted— is  a  general  idea  or  concept.  If  evolu- 
tionists have  such  a  conception  of  a  general  idea  it  is  no  wonder  that 
they  identify  man's  intellect  wiih  the  brute  animal's  instinct.  Some 
animal  is  to  be  discovered  and  hunted— a  general  idea— a  universal 
concept !  The  very  same  as  the  ideas  of  time,  space,  extension,  exist- 
ence, of  life,  of  the  finite,  the  infinite,  the  absolute,  the  relative,  the 
idea  of  morality,  of  virtue,  of  vice,  of  justice  and  injustice,  of  right- 
eousness and  unrighteousness,  of  law,  of  order,  and  a  hundred  more 
like  these  ?  Let  us  conclude,  for  God's  sake,  and  leave  behind  us  such 
disgusting  ignorance.  Brute  animals  cannot  exercise  the  power  of  ab- 
straction and  of  generalization;  they  are  not  possessed  of  any  abstract 
conceptions  and  universal  ideas,  therefore  they  have  not  the  remotest 
trace  of  an  intellect  or  reason,  the  property  and  privilege  of  man  alone. 
It  is  this  power  which  distances  man  infinitely  from  all  lower  animals, 
the  faculty  of  abstraction  and  generalization,  and  the  full  patrimony 
of  abstract  and  universal  ideas.  It  is  this  power  that  has  created  all 
the  prodigies  of  mechanical  and  fine  arts,  created  the  sciences,  guided 
and  ruled  the  greatest  discoveries  of  the  world ;  it  is  this  power  of  an 
immense  universal  ideal,  of  the  best  and  the  greatest  and  the  most 
perfect  in  everything  which  spurs  man  or  stimuktes  hitn,  leaves  him 
unquiet  and  restless,  and  seeking  always  to  advance  in  the  way  of  pro- 
gress, and  after  having  attained  a  most  wonderful  development,  to 
consider  it  as  naught  and  begin  a  new  journey  forward.  Is  it  not  a 
shame  even  to  compare  this  choice  and  wonderful  creation  of  God  with 
the  brute  beasts?" 


147 
TWENTY-THIRD  ARTICLE. 

THE   EXCLUSIVE  SIGN   OF   INTELLIGENCE. 

Doctor. — "In  our  last  conversation  we  proved  that  man  alone  is 
endowed  with  intelligence,  that  sublime  faculty,  which,  according  to 
the  best  and  grandest  among  those  who  have  cultivated  philosophy, 
has  been  considered  as  infinitely  superior  to  the  senses;  a  faculty 
which  has  enabled  man  to  produce  his  wonderful  masterpieces  in  art 
and  science,  and  which  causes  him  to  have  nothing  short  than  an  in- 
finite ideal  as  his  beacon-light  towards  improvement  and  progress.  We 
must,  in  this  interview,  consider  the  true,  exclusive  sign  of  this  noble 
faculty — the  language.  'What  is  it  that  man  can  do,'  says  a  great 
authority  in  this  matter,  'and  of  which  we  find  no  signs,  no  rudiments, 
in  the  whole  bru!e  world?'  I  answer^ without  hesitation  :  The  one 
great  barrier  between  the  brute  and  man  is  language.  Man  speaks, 
and  no  brute  has  ever  uttered  a  word.  'Language  is  our  Rubicon  and 
no  brute  will  dare  to  cross  it'  (Max  Miiller,  'Science  of  Language'). 
Man,  then,  cannot  descend  from  an  animal  because  no  brute  can 
speak." 

George. — "But,  doctor,  Darwin  denies  that:  'Nor,  as  we  have 
seen,  does  the  faculty  of  articulate  speech  in  itself  offer  any  insuper- 
able objection  to  the  belief  that  man  has  developed  from  some  lower 
form'  ('Descent')." 

Doctor. — "I  am  quite  aware  that  he  says  so,  but  I  am  confident 
that  we  shall  be  al.lG  to  prove  the  contrary  and  to  set  ofit  in  the  boldest 
and  clearest  light  Darwin's  supine  ignorance  and  total  unacquaintance 
with  the  commonest  principles  of  logic  and  philosophy." 

Adele. — "I  expect  to  have  a  feast  and  a  treat." 

Doctor.— "George,  how  many  kind  of  languages  are  there  ?" 

George. — "Language  being  the  external  expression  of  sensations, 
feelings  or  thoughts,  I  should  say,  in  general,  that  there  are  as  many 
kinds  of  langiiages  as  there  are  ways  of  expressing  those  things." 

Doctor. — "Very  good.  But  restricting  the  word  language  to  ex- 
pressions which  emanate  from  animals,  how  many  kinds  of  languages 
would  you  admit  ?" 

George.— "I  would  admit  only  two,  the  natural  and  the  artificial." 

Adele.— "Pray   xpfci  ." 

George. — "Thf  ar«fcurdl  language  of  animals  consists  in  the  simple 
emissions  of  souiiLS  u.  cries,  iu  their  attitudes,  in  their  looks  and 
movement  of  the  viaage." 

Adele. — "So  the  mewling  of  my  cat,  the  raising  of  his  paws — as  the 
knights  of  old  who  put  their  lance  in  rest — to  defend  herself  from  the 


148 

attacks  of  the  dog,  the  sparkling  of  her  eyes,  and  the  contortions  of 
her  face  is  what  you  would  call  its  natural  language?" 

George. — "Certainly." 

Doctor. — "And  such  language  is  common  to  man  and  animals ; 
but  in  the  latter  it  is  confined  to  a  small  number  of  signs,  to  manifest 
a  feeling,  a  desire  or  an  appeal." 

George.— " 'Man,'  says  Darwin,  as  a  highly  competent  judge, 
Archbishop  Whately  remarks,  'is  not  the  only  animal  that  can  make 
use  of  language  to  express  what  is  passing  in  his  mind,  and  can  under- 
stand more  or  less  what  is  so  expressed  by  another'  {Joe  cit)." 

Doctor.— "Dear  me,  how  puerile !  how  sickening !  a  very  com- 
petent judge,  no  less  than  Archbishop  Whatley,  is  called  to  account 
for— what  ?  For  that  which  the  smallest  child  in  all  ages  knows  per- 
fectly well." 

Adele.— "Certainly,  Mr.  Darwin  ;  we  freely  admit  that  both  man 
and  animals  have  certain  common  signs  to  express  their  sensations 
and  feelings,  and  this  is  called  natural  language.  For  you  to  disturb 
for  such  a  frivolity  the  shade  of  no  less  a  personage  than  of  His  Grace 
himself  is  an  unwarrantable  liberty." 

Doctor.— "This  disposes  in  a  lump  of  all  the  examples  adduced  by 
Darwin  in  support  of  his  statement.  Let  us  pass  to  artificial  language. 
What  do  you  mean  by  it,  George?" 

George. — "I  mean  by  artificial  language  that  which  is  formed  of 
articulate  sounds  of  the  voice,  and  the  signification  of  which  is  con- 
ventional; which  articulate  sounds,  difierently  combined  and  ar- 
ranged, are  apt  to  express  not  only  sensations  or  feelings,  but 
thoughts  and  ideas  infinitely  distant  from,  and  above,  our  senses  and 
feelings." 

Doctor. — "Do  you  understand,  Adele  ?" 

j^dele. — "I  would  like  to  put  some  questions.  What  is  meant  by 
articulate  sounds  ?" 

Doctor.— "Suppose  you  hear  a  long,  piercing  shriek,  you  would  call 
it  one  continued  sound,  would  you  not  ?" 

Adele.— "Certainly." 

Doctor.— "But  suppose  I  make  a  number  of  distinct  sounds  and 
connect  them  together,  so  as  to  exhibit  one  perfect  whole,  like  the 
joints  or  bones  which,  put  together,  form  the  human  frame,  what  would 
you  call  that  ?" 

A.dele.— "I  guess  that  is  what  you  mean  by  articulate  sounds,  that 
is,  the  utterance  of  a  number  of  distinct  sounds  put  together ;  as,  for 
instance,  if  I  pronounce  the  word  'incontestible'  I  may  consider  every 
syllable  of  that  word  as  so  many  distinct  sounds,  which,  joined  together, 
form  that  adjective." 

Doctor.— "Articulate   language,  then,    is  a    number  of  distinct 


149 

sounds  put  together  to  form  a  complete  sign,  tu  express  what  is 
waut<?d." 

A  dele. — "But  why  did  George  say, 'the  signification  of  which  is  con- 
ventional or  agreed  upon  ?' " 

Doctor. — "Because  those  sounds  don't  of  their  own  nature  express 
the  object.    If  they  do,  it  is  only  by  an  agreement,  and  not  because 
there  is  an  essential  necessary  relation  between  that  sound  and  the 
object.     You  remember  the  well-known  lines  of  Shakespeare: 
"  'What's  in  a  name?   That  which  we  call  arose 
By  any  other  name  would  smtU  as  sweet.' 

•  Romeo  mid  Juliet. 
What  does  the  poet  mean  ?  That  as  there  is  no  intrinsic  necessary 
connection  between  the  flower  we  with  to  designate  by  that  name 
and  the  sound  rose,  if  we  called  that  flower  by  any  other  name  or 
sound,  that  change  would  not  efiect  its  nature  and  qualities,  and. 
therefore  the  roje  would  smell  :  s  tL^weet." 

Adele. — "I  understand  now.  But  what  did  Mr.  George  mean  or 
allude  to  by  saying  that  artificial  language,  by  combination  and  ar- 
rangement of  words,  could  express  not  only  sensations  and  feelings, 
but  thoughts  infinitely  distinct  from,  and  superior  to,  any  sensation  or 
feeling." 

Doctor. — "He  alluded  to  abstract  and  universal  conceptions." 
Adele. — "I  would  like  to  have  these  explained  once  more." 
Doctor. — "According  to  the  theory  developed  in  our  last  inter- 
view, you  will  recollect,  that  to  abstract  is  to  draw,  to  dig  the  intel- 
ligible from  the  sensible,  to  get  at  the  nature  and  essence  of  things, 
and  that  to  generalize  is  the  faculty  of  applying  that  idea  to  all  such 
as  represent  and  exhibit  the  same  essence  and  nature.  But  it  may 
not  be  amiss  to  give  here  another  instance  of  those  faculties  of  ab- 
straction and  generalization.  Suppose  a  number  of  men  pass  before 
me.  The  first  appeari  in  all  his  individual  peculiarities  of  body  as'to 
its  form,  its  height,  its  size,  its  color,  its  vigor,  its  age,  and  so  forth  ; 
similarly  with  his  peculiarities  of  mind  aa  to  its  powers;  the  second 
comes  in  sight  also  with  his  peculiar  traits  of  body  and  mind;  the 
third,  and  so  on.  Now,  suppoee  that  when  they  have  all  passed  1 
begin  to  investigate  what  is  common  to  all  of  them  and  what  is 
speciiil  to  each,  and  in  trying  to  solve  the  problem  I  eliminate  from 
all  of  them  their  individual  diflTerences  of  body  and  mind,  and  what 
have  I  left  as  a  result  ?  Evidently  I  have  left  the  idea  of  what  really 
makes  a  man,  a  body  informed  by  a  rational  principle  or  mind  ;  be- 
cause after  I  have  stripped  each  one  of  his  peculiar  traits,  I  find  thaf, 
like  all  the  rest,  he  has  a  body  and  a  rational  principle,  and  I  con- 
clude the  real  idea  of  man,  of  his  true  essence  and  nature,  is  that  of  a 
being  composed  of  a  body  informed  and  vivified  by  a  rational  princi- 


150 

pie  or  substance.  That  is  the  abstract  idea  of  man,  that  is,  the  concep- 
tion by  the  mind  of  his  real  nature  and  essence  stripped  of  all  the 
peculiarities  which  accompany  such  and  such  a  man.  That  idea  is 
called  abstract,  from  the  Latin  abdmhere,  to  strip  off,  to  cut  ofi  from 
because  it  is  the  conception  of  the  real  nature  of  a  thing  stripped  o 
the  peculiar  traits  of  the  individual  objects  in  which  it  always  ap 
pears,  though  clothed  in  earh  of  them  with  peculiar  moditications 
That  idea  is  called,  also,  universal,  aa  we  remarked,  because  represent 
ing  and  exhibiting  the  real  nature  of  a  thing  it  can  be  applied  to  al 
objects  at  all  times  and  in  all  places  which  appear  endowed  with  the 
same  nature  and  essence." 

Adele. — "I  see,  again,  how  true  it  is  that  thought  is  infinitely 
superior  to  any  emotion  and  feeling." 

Doctor. — "You  understand,  then,  how  articulate  language  can 
express  thought  and  ideas.  Coming,  then,  nearer  to  the  point,  we 
claim  first,  thatatticulate  language  is  the  exclusive  p-operty  of  man  ; 
second,  that  the  power  of  connecting  definite  idf  as  with  definite 
articulate  sounds  or  words  is  al  o  the  exclusive  priv'Kge  ol  the  human 
race,  in  which  no  lower  animal  can  ever  share;  third,  that  far  from 
receiving  this  gift  by  inheritance  from  a  progei  itor  uf  lower  form,  or 
far  from  inventing  and  developing  it  of  himself,  man  must  have  re- 
ceived it  directly  from  the  Creator,  First,  then,  the  power  of  emitting 
articulate  sounds  belong  to  man  alone." 

George. — "Darwin  denies  it,  and  eays  'that  it  is  not  the  mere  articu- 
lation which  is  our  distinguishing  character,'  because  parrots  and 
other  birds  possess  this  power." 

Adele. — "Then  it  would  be  more  logical  to  i^ake  us  descend  from 
parrots  and  not  from  the  ape." 

Doctor. — "And  you  would  be  right.  But  it  requires  the  gigantic 
intellect  of  Darwin  and  its  colossal  logical  powers  to  infer,  from  the 
few  sounds  which  the  parrot  utters  at  random,  and  with  reason  and 
no  reason — sounds  which  he  has  learned  after  long  and  repeated  efibrts, 
that  the  power  of  articulation  is  not  the  exclusive  appendage  of  man. 
All  the  mammals  which  have  organs  better  fitted  than  the  parrot  for 
articulation,  have  for  thousands  of  years  gone  on  emitting  nothing 
but  shrieks  and  cries,  and  cannot  utter  a  single  articulate  sound,  let 
alone  a  number  of  them.  How  is  this  accounted  for  ?  The  ape, 
which  imitates  and  mimics  so  well  and  so  dexterously  the  actions  of 
man,  why  does  he  fail  to  imitate  him  in  his  articulate  language  ?  How 
is  it  that  no  power  of  training  can  enable  him  to  articulate  a  single 
word  ?" 

George. — "But  Mr.  Darwin  gives  up  this  part  of  the  argument  in 
those.  *  The  habitual  use  of  articulate  language  is,  however,  peculiar 
to  man.' " 


151 

Adele.— "Which  means— as  a  fact— the  steady,  constant,  perma- 
nent use  of  articuhite  language  is  peculiar  to  man  ;  and  the  rare,  dis- 
connected, occasional  use,  by  tits  and  starts,  belongs  to  animals.  Much 
obliged  for  the  concession.  We  don't  require  more  to  prove  our  state- 
ment." 

Doctor. — "Let  us  pass  to  the  second  claim,  that  the  power  of  con- 
necting definite  sounds  with  definite  ideas  is  the  sole  and  exclusive 
privilege  of  man." 

George. — "  'Not  at  all,'  says  Darwin  ;  'for  it  is  certain  that  some  par- 
rots which  have  been  taught  to  speak,  connect,  unerringly,  words  with 
things  and  persons  with  events.' " 

Adele. — "What  is  the  proof  of  such  a  grand  assertion  ?" 

George.— "Why,  did  not  Admiral  Sir  J.  Sullivan  tell  Mr.  Darwin 
of  an  African  parrot  kept  in  his  father's  house,  who  said  good  morning 
to  every  one  at  breakfast,  and  good  night  to  each  as  they  left  the  room 
At.  night ;  and  didn't  this  same  parrot  give  a  tremendous  scolding  to  a 
dog  which  intruded  into  the  house,  and  didn't  this  same  long-headed 
and  goody  bird  call  another  parrot,  who  was  misbehaving — 'you 
naughty  polly?'" 

Adele. — "To  be  sure ;  what  else  could  you  want  ?  Animals  of  all 
kind  connect  definite  sounds  with  definite  ideas,  and  persons  with 
events  ;  because  an  African  parrot  learned  to  say  good  morning  and 
good  night,  isn't  that  sufficient  proof  ?  Is  not  the  argument  according 
to  all  the  rules  of  logic— I  mean  the  logic  that  Mr.  Dirwin  must  have 
learned  to  draw  a  universal  consequence  from  a  particular  fact  in 
bpite  of  and  in  opposition  to  all  logic?  But  then,  didn't  the  parrot 
Hcvjid  poor  doggy  for  his  intrusion  ?  And  what  would  you  have  more  ? 
I  wonder  if  the  canine  intruder  paid  much  hted  to  the  scold ;  and  I 
am  curious  to  know  if  the  naughty  polly  didn't  retort  in  articulate 
language  and  tell  her  to  mind  her  own  business.  That  is  what  you 
scientists  call  reasoning,  is  it  not  ?" 

George. — "Do  not  get  excited,  Miss  Adele,  Darwin,  as  usual,  takes 
it  back.  'The  lower  animals  difi'er  from  man  solely  in  his  almo  t  in- 
finitely larger  power  of  associating  together  the  most  diversified  sounds 
and  ideas,  and  this  obviously  depends  on  the  high  development  of  his 
mental  powers'  {loc.  cit.  50)." 

Doctor  — "Though  he  fails  to  account  for  the  cause  of  this  high 
development  of  his  mental  powers,  we  will  accept  his  di2"erence,or  rather 
distinction,  without  a  difference,  and  pass  on  to  the  last  question 
which  resolves  itself  into  three  subordinate  ones:  Did  man  receive 
this  articulate  language  from  a  lower  progenitor?  Did  he  invent  it 
himself  ?    Who  gave  it  to  him?" 

Ade'.e — "How  does  Darwin  answer  the  questions,  Mr.  George?" 
George. — "By  laying  down  two  statements.     The  first  is,  'that  no 


152 

pbilologist  now  supposes  that  any  language  has  been  deliberately  in- 
vented ;  it  has  been  slowly  and  unconsciously  developed  by  many 
steps ;  second,  that  these  steps  were  'the  imitation  and  modification  of 
various  natural  sounds,  the  voices  of  other  animals,  and  man's  own 
instinctive  cries,  aided  by  signs  and  gestures,'  and  he  oncludes  to 
show  the  plausibility  of  his  theory  by  the  words— 'may  not  some  un- 
usually wise,  ape-like  animal  have  imitated  the  growl  of  a  beast  of 
prey,  and  thus  told  his  fellow-monkeys  the  nature  of  the  expected 
danger  ?  This  would  have  been  the  first  step  in  the  formation  of 
language'  (page  47)." 

Adele. — "Very  easily  done,  indeed!" 

Doctor. — "To  fling  away  all  this  silly  trash  at  once,  we  will  prove 
that  language  could  not  only  not  be  invented  by  brute  animals,  but 
not  even  by  man  himself,  and  that  if  man  speaks,  it  is  owing  to  a 
beneficent  gift  of  his  Creator.  Mark  our  statement  contains  two  pro- 
positions :  first,  no  brute  animal  could  invent  language ;  second,  not 
even  man  himself  could  have  done  so." 

Adele. — "How  is  the  first  part  of  the  statement  proven  ?" 

Doctor. — "Easily  enough.  Language  is  made  of  abstract  and  uni- 
versal ideas.  But  we  have  demonstrated  that  brute  animals  are 
not  endowed  with  any  faculties  higher  than  sensibility  and  instinct, 
and  hence  are  lacking  in  the  faculty  of  abstraction  and  generaliza- 
tion. Therefore,  it  would  be  absolutely  impossible  for  any  of  them  to 
invent  language,  in  spite  of  all  the  wise,  apelike  animals  of  Darwin. 
George,  please  to  give  us  the  principal  parts  of  speech  ?" 

George. — "They  are — articles,  nouns,  pronouns,  adjectives,  verbs, 
prepositions  and  interjections." 

Adele. — "Why,  he  is  reciting  his  grammar  !" 

Doctor. — "To  be  sure ;  and  what  is  grammar  but  the  art  of  speak- 
ing ?  Well,  now,  every  one  of  those  parts  of  speech  implies  an  ab- 
stract and  general  idea.  Let  us  go  over  a  few  of  them.  Take  any  of 
them.  What  is  a  noun  ?  It  is  the  name  of  anything  which  exists,  or 
of  which  we  have  any  notion,  as  New  York,  man,  virtue,  la^v,  repub- 
lic. It  embraces  concrete  ideas  as  well  as  abstract  and  general.  In 
the  examples  given  New  York  is  the  only  concrete  idea,  the  others  are 
abstract  and  general.  The  article,  which  is  a  word  used  btfure  a  noun 
in  order  to  signify  how  far  its  signification  extends,  is  in  every  lan- 
guage definite  or  indefinite,  so  a  man  implies  any  one  man  of  the 
species,  the  man  points  out  a  certain  particular  man ;  and  the  first 
proposition  as  well  as  the  second  clearly  indicates  and  implies  Loth  a 
general  and  a  particular  ide*  of  man  ;  an  adjective,  which  is  a  word 
added  to  a  noun  to  express  a  quality  :  as,  an  industrious  man,  a  skill- 
ful artist,  an  excellent  friend,  is  essentially  an  abstract  idea.  The  ex- 
amples given  imply  the  abstract  idea  of  industry,  skill  and  moral  ex- 


153 

cellence.  I  need  not  add  that  the  pronoun  in  every  language  impliea 
the  idea  of  relation  to  subject.  When  I  say— Lincoln  was  a  very 
humane  man;  he  emancipated  the  slaves— in  uttering  he,  I  intend  to 
refer  to  Lincoln,  and  I  must  necessarily  have  and  suppose  the  idea  of 
relation.     George,  what  is  a  verb  ?" 

George. — "It  is  a  word  which  signifies  to  be,  to  act,  or  to  be  acted 
upon  :    as,  I  am,  I  ruin,  I  am  ruled." 

Doctor. — "Well,  no  form  of  speech  bettgr  than  the  verb  puts  in 
a  better  light  the  necessity  of  abstract  ideas  for  the  formation  of 
lauguage.  To  he  implies  the  abstract  idea  of  existence ;  to  act  that 
of  action  and  movement ;  to  be  acted  upon  the  idea  of  passiveness. 
Then  as  existence,  action  and  passiveness  are  modified  by  time  they 
imply  the  idea  of  time.  /  am  reading  implies  the  abstract  idea  of 
preseut  time;  I  was  ■.-eading  the  idea  of  past  time;  I  shall  or  will 
read  the  idea  of  future  time.  Then  add  the  abstract  ideas  of  possi- 
bility, condition  and  dependence,  which  oftentimes  accompany  verbfj, 
and  you  will  see  that  a  multitude  of  abstract  ideas  accompany  the 
principal  ideas  of  existence,  of  action  and  passion  which  verbs  repre- 
sent. Shall  I  say  anything  about  adverbe,  which  are  to  verbs  what 
adjectives  are  to  nouns  ?  Is  it  necessary  for  me  to  mention  that  prepo- 
sitions essentially  imply  a  relation  between  two  words,  and  conse- 
quently the  abstract  idea  of  relation,  as  much  as  conjunction  imply 
connection  of  its  abstract  concept  ?  We  may  then  conclude  that 
as  language  is  necessarily  and  absolutely  made  up  of  abstract  and 
general  ideas,  it  follows  that  as  animals  are  incapable  of  forming  such 
idea?,  they  cannot,  by  any  possible  way,  invent  or  form  a  language. 
Brute  animals,  therefore,  can  never  speak." 

Adele. — "Laugudge,  then,  is  simply  and  absolutely  and  exclusively 
man's  privilege;  and  that  gives  the  lie  to  the  words  of  Darwin  :  'Nor, 
as  we  have  seen,  does  the  faculty  of  articulate  speech  in  itself  ofler  any 
insuperable  objection  to  the  belief  that  man  has  been  developed  from 
some  lower  form.'  By  his  leave  we  insist  that  as  animals  never  did  or 
could  speak,  there  is  a  most  insuperable  objection  to  man  being  de- 
scended from  a  lower  form  ;  for,  in  that  case,  he  would  be  as  dumb  as 
they  are,  and  capable  of  nothing  more  than  cries,  strieks,  and  howls." 

Doctor. — "But  let  us  pass  to  the  other  point,  that  men  themselves 
c  mid  not  inven-t  language.  Understand  me ;  there  are  some  writers 
who  are  of  opinion  that  man  cannot  form  abstract  ideas  or  universal 
concepts  without  the  aid  of  language.  But  we  will  not  enter  into 
that  question,  as  it  would  lead  us  much  further  than  the  limits  ap- 
pointed to  our  interviews  would  permit.  Even  allowing  that  man 
could  think  abstract  and  universal  ideas  without  language,  still  we 
must  contend  that  mat.  could  not  and  has  not  invented  the  language 
to  express  them." 


15i 

Adele, — "You  premise  two  thirgs,  uncle,  that  man  could  not,  and 
that  he  has  not,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  invented  the  language." 

Doctor. — "Certainly ;  now  for  the  proof  of  the  first.  Do  you  recol- 
lect how  we  defined  the  language  ?" 

Adek. — "Yes,  sir.  Language  is  a  number  of  articulate  sounds 
the  signification  of  which  is  arbitrary  and  conventional." 

Doctor. — "Very  good.  Then,  if  the  signification  of  sounds  is  ar- 
bitrary and  conventional^  when  men  Wanted  to  invent  a  language 
they  must  have  agreed  upon  the  signification  they  would  attach  to 
certain  sounds  and  the  meaning  they  would  attach  to  others." 

'Adele. — "I  don't  see  how  they  could  have  done  otherwise?" 

Doctor. — "And  do  you  not  see  that,  in  order  to  do  all  that,  they 
must  have  spoken  already ;  otherwise  how  could  they  communicate 
with  each  other  in  matters  so  extremely  diflBcult  and  requiring  the 
most  exalted  and  the  deepest  knowledge  of  philo-ophy  '?" 

Adele. — "I  perceive,  I  overlooked  a  most  important  point.  Every 
language  supposes  certain  conventionalism  because  it  implies  a  system 
of  signs  to  which  everyone  attaches  the  eaojc  meaning.  Now,  the 
questioa.is  :  Are  these  conventionalisms  posbible  withouS  a  verbal  com- 
munication ?  It  was  necessary  to  render  tb  is  system  o  f  signs  intelligible 
to  all.  But  how  to  make  it  comprehensible  without  explanation  and 
elucidations  ?  And  how  to  give  such  explanations  without  language  ?" 

George. — "Therefore  we  must  conclude  with  Roiasseau  that  the 
language  must  have  been  of  the  highest  necessity  to  invent  lan- 
guage." 

Doctor. — "In  other  words,  the  supporters  of  such  opinion  must 
continually  revolve  in  a  circle ;  they  want  man  to  invent  the  language 
and  he  must  already  speak  a  language  to  invent  one.  Whoever  reflecis 
for  a  moment  what  profound  psychology  is  contained  in  language  can 
fully  convince  himself  of  th:i»-,  truth.  Language  is  a  psycholosy  in 
which  every  phenomenon  of  thought  has  its  distinct  form,  its  ex- 
pression, its  particular  sign,  whf  re  the  whole  nature  is  analyzed 
and  taken  in  parts,  wherein  all  the  qualities  of  bodies  as  well  as  all  the 
conceptions  of  the  mind  are  abstracted  and  separated,  one  from  the 
other,  with  a  knowledge  and  skill  such  as  to  command  the  admiration 
of  every  reflecting  mind.  The  ablest  philosopher  could  not  analyze 
the  human  mind  with  as  much  depth  as  the  inventor  of  language 
would  have  been  obliged  to  do.  For  there  is  not  a  shade  of  sentiment, 
an  element  of  perception,  or  modification  of  being,  a  modification  of 
faculties,  of  time,  of  place,  of  number,  of  person,  of  action,  of  passion 
— in  a  word  there  is  not  a  state,  an  attitude,  a  relation  of  the  human 
mind  and  life  which  has  not  its  expression  in  language.  And  how 
could  it  be  thought  pos.-ible  that  the  first  inventors  of  language  had 
such  perfect  knowledge  of  psychology  all  at  once  as  to  invent  sounds 


155 

for  every  one  of  those  thoughts,  ideas  aud  sentiments?  The  thing  la 
sheerly  and  utterly  impossible." 

Ac'ele.— "But,  uncle,  you  have  said  that,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  man 
has  not  invented  the  language.    Will  you  be  so  kind  as  to,  prove  it  ?" 

Doctor.— "Certainly.  All  modern  ethnographists  are  agreed  on  the 
following  points:  First,  that  there  exists  one  mother-tongue  from 
which  all  others  have  been  derived ;  second,  that  the  separation  of 
idioms  originated  in  a  sudden  and  violent  cause.  Now,  if  language 
were  man's  invention  we  must  suppose  that  every  couple,  or  at  least 
every  family,  would  have  composed  a  special  one,  and  that,  therefore, 
we  should  find  no  sort  of  analogy  between  any  two  such  languages  as 
is  always  the  case  with  things  depending  on  arbitrary  and  fortuitous 
events.  But  the  fact  is  otherwise.  There  are  in  all  languages  affini- 
ties and  relations  which  strike  everyone  who  examines  them, 
common  terms  which  render  al}  doubt  of  a  common  origin  absolutely 
impossible.  One  person,  then,  and  not  a  number  of  men  or  families, 
must  have  invented  it.  And  who  is  that  inventor?  God  or  man? 
AVhat  proofd  are  alleged  by  our  adversaries  that  man  invented  it  ? 
None.  What  reasons  do  they  bring  forward  or  what  facts  that  man 
existed  for  some  time  without  language?  What  proofs  have  they  to 
show  that  both  man  and  language  were  not  contemporary  ?  We  con- 
clude, then,  with  Alexander  Humboldt,  Merian,  Klaproth,  Fred. 
Schlegel,  Herder,  Turner  Kemusat,  Niebuhr,  Balbi,  that  man  received 
his  language  from  the  Creator  £t  the  same  time  as  his  existence." 

Adele.— "To  sum  up,  then,  we  have  seen  that  language,  articulate 
and  artificial,  is  spoken  only  by  man,  because  man  alone  is  endowed 
with  intelligence,  and  that  it  is  impossible  that  man  could  have  in- 
herited it  from  a  lower  ancestor,  because  neither  brute  animals  nci 
man  could  have  invented  the  language ;  the  animals,  because  being 
wanting  in  the  reasoning  faculty,  they  are  incapable  of  forming  abstract 
and  universal  ideas ;  man,  because  to  invent  aud  adopt  a  conventional 
and  arbitrary  system  of  sounds,  would  already  require  a  language  fully 
complete  and  perfectly  understood  by  those  who  would  have  to  agree 
upon  that  system.    God,  then,  must  have  given  man  his  language." 

George.— "The  great  conclusion  of  all  our  converjation  then,  may 
be  expressed  in  the  words  of  Max  Miiller :  'Through  reason  we  not 
only  stand  a  step  above  the  brute  creation,  we  belong  to  a  different 
world !'    ('Science  of  Language')" 

Doctor.— Yes,  sir,  language  is  the  exclusive  sign  of  intelligence. 
Man  alone  speaks ;  therefore,  he  alone,  in  the  whole  animal  creation, 
is  endowed  with  intelligence,  and  consequently  cannot  owe  his  exist- 
ence and  origin  to  any  lower  for m  of  life.  He  is  a  different  world  from 
all  brute  animals,  a  special  creation  of  the  Most  High." 


156 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ARTICLE. 

IS  IT   A   SAFE  OPINIOK   TO   HOLD    THAT     MAS'S   BOEY   WAS   DEVELOPED 
FROM   THE   APE? 

George. — "Doctor,  I  have  heard  that  a  Catholic  could,  without 
any  trouble  of  conscience,  hold  the  opinion  that  man's  body  was  de- 
veloped from  the  ape." 

Adele. — "Why  do  you  say  man's  body  and  not  man  ?" 

George.— "Because  it  is  admitted  by  all,  I  believe,  without  excep- 
tion, that  the  spiritual  principle  in  man  must  be  the  result  of  a 
special  action  of  God,  and  could  never  be  developed  from  any  lower 
form  of  animals." 

Adele. — "Then  the  whole  question  is  restricted  to  man's  body, 
and  you  inquire,  I  believe,  if  it  is  safe  and  coneistent  with  Catholic 
faith,  to  maintain  that  man's  body  could  be  developed  from  the 
ape  ?" 

Doctor. — "An  eminent  Catholic  scientist,  Mivart,  followed  by 
some  other  writers,  has  maintained  such  opinion.  After  having  given 
the  theory  that  we  may  take  the  word  creation  in  a  twofold  sense — first, 
creation  from  nothing,  that  is,  that  action  of  God  which  eflTects  things 
from  no  preexisting  matter;  and  derivative  creation,  that  is,  that 
action  of  God  which  concurs  with  the  natural  forces  in  order  to  de- 
velop something  from  preexisting  materials,  hecoucludes:  'Suppos- 
ing the  human  soul  to  be  directly  and  immediately  created,  yet  each 
human  body  is  evolved  by  the  ordinary  operation  of  natural  physical 
laws'  ('Genesis  of  Species,'  p.  300.    Appleton,  '71)." 

Adele. — "Let  me  try  to  understand  this  opinion.  He  main- 
tains that  there  are  two  sorts  of  creation,  the  direct  and  immediate, 
that  which  effects  things  from  nothing;  man's  soul  is  the  immediate 
and  direct  effect  of  such  creation.  The  other  is  a  derivative  creation, 
that  is,  when  a  thing  is  evolved  from  preexisting  materials  according 
to,  and  in  virtue  of,  the  ordinary  operation  of  physical  laws.  Man's 
body  was  the  result  of  this  derivative  creation.  But  I  don't  see  how 
the  action  of  God  has  anything  to  do  here,  when  the  whole  thing  is 
the  result  of  the  operation  of  physical  laws." 

Doctor. — "According  to  our  scientist,  the  action  of  God  comes  in 
here  in  the  same  manner  as  it  concurs  with  every  action  of  His  crea- 
tures. You  remember  the  doctrine  explained  in  one  of  our  conversa- 
tions, that  God's  creative  action  may  be  considered  under  three  dif- 
ferent aspects:  as  strictly  creative,  that  is,  efiecting  finite  substances 
from  nothing;  as  conservative,  inasmuch  as  it  keeps  in  existence  the 
substances  it  has  created ;    and  as  concurrent,  inasmuch  as  it  incites 


157 

created  substances  to  action,  aids  them  during  the  performance  of  ac- 
tion, and  helps  them  to  perfect  it.  It  is  in  this  manner  that  Saint 
George  Mivart  acknowledges  the  body  of  man  to  have  been  created 
by  God,  inasmuch  as  He  concurred  with  the  natural  causes  to  de- 
velop it." 

George.— "Then  the  creation  of  man's  body  presents  no  special 
features  to  distinguish  it  from  any  other  natural  event  ?" 

Doctor. — "None  whatever,  according  to  Mivart." 

Adele.— "And  can  we,  as  Catholics,  safely  maintain  such  opinion  ?" 

Doctc  .r.— "Assuredly  not,  either  as  Catholics  or  philosophers." 

George.— "Why  ?" 

Doctor. — "Because  that  opinion  is  not  tenable,  neither  in 
theology  nor  philosophy.  We  will  study  the  proofs  together,  but  be- 
fore we  enter  upon  them  we  must  premise  a  few  remarks  by  way  of 
explanation.  First,  in  what  sense  do  we  maintain  that  man's  body  is 
a  special  creation  of  God  ?  second,  how  are  we  to  understand  that  God 
formed  man's  body  out  of  the  slime  of  the  earth  ?  With  regard  to  the 
first  question  we  hold :  first,  that  man's  body  was  not  created  from 
nothing  ;  second,  that  it  was  not  evolved  from  a  preexisting  material, 
accoidingtothe  usual  operation  of  physical  f  >  ccs  and  laws;  third,  that 
God's  infinite  energy  and  power  by  an  immediate,  distinct,  and  special 
act,  formed  it  out  of  the  slime  of  the  earth.  Hence,  we  take  the  words 
of  Genesis :  'The  Lord  God  formed  man  of  the  slime  of  the  earth' 
(Genesis,  ch.  2),  in  their  proper,  obvious,  natural,  literal  sense.  This 
last  statement  will  elucidate  and  explain  how  God  formed  man's 
body  out  Oi  the  clay  of  the  earth.  Some  scientists,  with  that  material- 
ism which  colors  all  their  thoughts  and  ideas  so  peculiar  to  Ihem, 
have  imagined  that  when  theologians  affirm  that  God  formed  man'd 
body  from  clay  they  represent  Him  as  a  downnght,  bona  fide  potter, 
mixing  \ip  and  elaborating  the  soft  earth  to  shape  it  into  a  statue  ex- 
hibiting man's  figure.  I  need  not  remark  that  such  a  monstrous  idea 
never  entered  any  other  head  except  that  of  the  scientists  aforesaid. 
The  formation  of  man's  body  from  clay  was  the  instantaneous  efTect 
andreeuitof  God's  infinite  will  and  euer^jy;  and  theologians  reject 
with  scorn  and  contempt  any  such  material  and  groes  interpretation 
of  their  meaning  and  cf  that  to  be  attached  to  the  wordi*  of  Genesis. 
And  now,  that  we  explained  what  is  meant  by  man's  body  being  a 
special  creation  of  God,  we  may  pass  to  the  reasons  which  render 
Mivart's  opinion  unsafe  and  untenable.  We  will  begin  by  theology. 
George,  i  suppose  you  are  aware  that  there  is  a  twofold  set  of  doctrines 
of  faith  ?" 

George. — "Not  that  I  am  aware  of.  I  am  not  very  strong  in  the 
knowledge  of  our  religion." 

Adele.— "Nor  I." 


158 

Doctor.— "It  is  a  great  pity.  Nowadays  every  educated  person 
ought  to  have  a  very  respectable  knowledge  of  his  holy  religion,  so  as 
to  have  all  the  principal  diflBculties  which  her  enemies  allege  against 
her  doctrine  answered  to  the  satisfaction  of  his  own  mind,  and  be  able 
to  solve  the  same  diflBculties  for  others.  You  ought  to  know,  then, 
that  there  are  two  diflerent  sets  of  doctrines  of  faith  :  first,  those  that 
have  been  declared  to  be  such  by  the  Church,  either  in  a  General 
Council,  or  by  the  Pope  alone  speaking  ex  cathedra,  that  is  to  say,  when 
he  speaks  and  decides  as  the  Doctor  and  Head  of  the  Universd  Church, 
and  when  he  addresses  the  whole  Church  on  a  question  of  faith  or 
morality.  For  instance,  the  Divinity  of  Our  Lord  is  one  of  these  doc- 
trines, because  declared  to  be  so  by  the  General  Council  of  Nice.  The 
doctrine  of  the  Immaculate  Conception  is  also  one  of  the  same 
class,  because  declared  ex  cathedra  by  Pius  IX.  There  is  another 
set  oi  doctrines  which  have  not  been  defined  by  any  General  Council 
or  by  any  Pope  speaking  ex  cathedra,  but  which  are  also  part  of  the 
deposit  of  revealed  truths,  and  are  to  be  believed  in  the  same  manner 
as  the  first ;  and  the  reason  is,  because  they  have  been  held  as  doc- 
trines of  faith  by  the  C Lurch  at  all  times  and  in  all  places,  as  it  is  evi- 
dent by  the  unanimous  testimony  of  the  Fathers  and  Theologians,  who 
have  maintained  and  held  them  as  such." 

Adele.— "Uncle,  who  may  the  Fathers  of  the  Church  be  ?" 

Doctor. — "They  are  men  eminent  for  piety  and  knowledge  of 
divine  things,  who,  by  their  works,  have  defended,  explained,  eluci- 
dated the  doctrines  of  the  Church.  They  have  lived  almost  in  every 
century,  and  are  preeminently  the  Doctors  of  the  Church ;  and  their 
united  testimony  on  some  points  is  of  the  greatest  authority  in  ascer- 
taining what  was  the  faith  of  the  Church,  not  only  at  their  time,  but 
previous  to  it,  as  they  hold  nothing  but  what  was  taught  and  handed 
down  to  them  by  their  teachers  and  Fathers  in  the  faith,  who  in  their 
turn  received  it  likewise." 

Adele.— "And  we  are  to  believe  that  man's  body,  being  the  direct 
and  immediate  efiect  of  a  special  act  of  God,  is  one  of  those  truths 
of  faith  which  has  been  held  to  be  of  faith  and  believed  by  the  Church 
at  all  times  and  in  all  places,  and  this  on  the  unanimous  testimony  of 
the  Doctors  and  Theologians  ?" 

Doctor. — "Certainly." 

(George.— "It  will  be  highly  interesting  to  hear  such  testimony." 

Doctor.— "But  I  can  give  here  only  an  abridgement  of  the  com- 
bined testimony  of  the  Fathers,  as  a  long  list  of  testimonies  would  tire 
Adelc.  I  will  except  only  a  few,  especially  St.  Augustine,  St.  Thomas, 
and  Suarez,  whose  words  I  shall  qaote,  because  these  three  Doctors 
have  been  cited  by  Saint  George  Mivart  as  advocates  ot  evolution. 
The  Doctors  of  the  Church  as  far  back  as  St.  Justin,  who  lived  in  the 


159 

second  century,  down  to  our  times,  have  not  only  taken  the  formation 
uf  the  body  of  man  and  that  of  the  woman,  as  related  by  Moses,  in  a 
literal,  obvious  and  nitural  sense,  but  on  the  general  theory  and  prin- 
ciple of  St.  Paul,  they  have  seen  in  that  narrative  and  its  particulars 
the  figure  and  the  foreshadowing  of  some  of  the  principal  mysteries  of 
the  Christian  dispensation.  Thus,  in  the  formation  of  man's  body 
from  the  unfilled  virgin  soil  they  have  surmieed  the  conception  of 
Our  Blessed  Lord  in  tht  virginal  cloister  of  His  Blessed  Mother. 
George,  read  the  worus  of  St.  Ireiiieas  which  you  will  find  marked," 

George. — "'And  as  that  first  formed  Adam  received  his  substance 
from  the  u  .tilled  and  yet  virgin  earth,  and  was  fashioned  by  the  hand  of 
God  (for  all  things  were  made  by  Him),  and  God  took  the  slime  of  the 
earth  and  fashioned  it  into  a  man,  likewise  He  (God)  rightly  ac- 
cepted the  Word  recapitulating  in  Himself  (Christ),  Adam,  and  exist- 
ing in  Mary  as  yet  Virgin,  as  the  generation  of  Adam's  recapitulation. 
For,  if  the  first  Adam  had  had  a  man  as  father,  they  (the  heretics) 
would  rightly  say  that  the  second  Adam  was  engendered  by  Joseph. 
But  if  he  (Adam )  was  taken  from  the  earth  and  formed  by  the  Word 
of  God,  it  was  necessary  that  the  Word  of  God,  taking  upon  Himself 
the  recapitulation  of  Adam,  should  present  a  similitude  of  his  genera- 
tion' ('Against  heretics,' book  3d,  ch.21,  of  God's  Nativity  from  the 
Virgin)." 

Doctor, — "It  is  evident  from  the  text  that  the  Fathers  did  not 
limit  themselves  to  admitting,  literally,  the  formation  of  Adam's  body 
from  the  earth,  but  discovered  in  that  formation  the  mystery  of  the 
conception  of  Christ  from  the  Virgin." 

Adele. — "I  think  the  thought  is  very  beautiful.  God  in  creating 
and  forming  man  was  sketching  out,  as  it  were,  the  principal  traits  and 
the  general  lineaments  of  the  second  Adam,  Our  Blessed  Lord. 
Hence,  He  formed  Adam's  body  from  the  undisturbed,  untilled  virgin 
earth  to  shadow  forth  the  conception  of  His  Incarnate  Son  in  the  vir- 
gin cloister  of  Mary." 

George. — "How  swiftly  a  religious  thought  comes  home  to  a 
woman's  heart." 

Doctor. — "Tertullian,  a  Doctor  next  to  St.  Irenceus,  in  the  book  on 
'Christ's Flesh,'  ch.  17  and  IS,  expresses  the  same  thought:  'The  earth 
was  as  yet  virgin,  not  yet  turned  up  by  work,  not  yet  submitted  to  the 
action  of  seeds,  and  we  have  been  told  that  God  made  man  from  it 
into  a  living  soul.  Wherefore,  if  the  first  Adam  was  created  from  the 
earib,  it  rightly  follows  that  the  new  Adam  should,  as  the  Apostle 
said,  be  brought  forth  into  a  vivifying  spirit  by  God  from  the  earth ; 
that  is,  a  fieeh  not  yet  touched  by  generation.'  St.  Basil,  another 
great  Doctor,  who  lived  later  on :  'Wherefore,  as  the  first  Adam  did 
not  come  to  light  from  the  union  of  man  and  woman,  but  was  formed 


out  of  the  earth,  so  the  new  Adam,  having  to  repair  the  corruption  of 
the  first,  took  a  body  formed  in  the  virginal  womb'  ('Commentary  on 
Isaias,'  ch.  7,  v.  201).  Passing  over  St.  Ambrose  and  other  Doctors,  we 
will  come  to  St.  Augustine,  an  evolutionist  according  to  Mivart,  a 
question  which  will  be  decided  by  the  texts  we  shall  quote.  Read 
them,  George,  as  I  have  put  them  down." 

George. — "  'That  the  God  of  Majesty,  incarnate  in  Mary,  was  not 
defiled  by  being  born  of  a  virgin,  as  He  was  not  defiled  by  making 
man  from  the  dust.  Nor  is  it  incredible  that  He  should  be  born  of 
a  virgin  who  formed  Adam  from  the  virgin  dust  and  woman  from  a 
rib.'  ('Sermon  on  the  Creed,'  ch.  2  )  Again,  'Why  do  you  not  be- 
lieve that  He  should  have  been  fashioned  in  the  womb  of  a  virgin 
ivhom  you  must  bdieve  to  have  made  man  of  the  slime  of  the  earth?' 
('Sermon,'  243)." 

Adele. — "That  is  contradicting  evolution  with  a  vengeance." 

George. — "Again,  'So  must  you  believe  Christ  to  be  the  Son  of 
God,  that  is,  true  God  and  one  of  the  persons  of  the  Trinity,  as  not 
to  doubt  of  His  Divinity,  conceived  as  He  was  of  the  nature  of  the 
Father ;  and,  likewise,  so  must  you  believe  to  be  true  man,  as  not  to 
think  his  flesh  to  be  of  celestial  origin  or  ferial,  or  of  anything  else, 
but  the  very  same  flesh  as  that  of  all  men,  that  is  to  say,  the  very  one 
which  God  Himse'f  formed  from  the  earth  for  the  first  m,a7i'  ('On  Faith 
to  Peter').  Again,  in  the 'Sermon,' 109:  'Who  shall  say  that  the 
Word,  by  Whom  all  things  were  made,  could  not  form  unto  Himself 
afljsh  without  a  mother,  as  He  made  the  first  tnan  without  father  or 
mother?  But  because  He  created  both  sexes,  male  and  female;  there- 
fore, in  being  born,  He  wanted  to  honor  both  sexes.' " 

Adele. — "It  sounds  almost  profane  here  to  remark  that  any 
supposition  of  St.  Augustine  having  held  the  body  of  man  to  be  the 
result  of  evolution  become  utterly  absurd,  when  he  affirms  so  clearly 
that  God  made  the  first  man  without  father  or  mother.  Surely, 
according  to  the  hypothesis  of  evolution,  the  apish  progenitors  of  man 
would  have  been  his  father  and  mother!" 

Doctor. — "We  will  quote  one  more  passage  from  St.  Augustine, 
taken  from  p.  122,  'Sermon  on  the  Nativity  of  Our  Lord' :  'If  you 
contend  to  be  contrary  to  nature  that  in  the  mystery  of  our  redemp- 
tion a  Virgin  is  said  to  have  conceived  without  the  help  of  man,  pray, 
according  to  what  nature  is  it  that  the  flesh  of  our  parent  was  formed 
without  flesh  ?  What  kind  of  a  reason  is  that,  or,  rather,  what  kind 
of  blind  contention  to  refuse  to  believe  that  God  could  form  man 
from  woman,  when  one  already  believes  that  He  could  form  him  from 
dust  ?  0,  man !  if  you  perceive  such  to  be  the  will  of  the  Omnipo- 
tent in  this  thing,  why  do  you  retract  it  as  to  the  work  ?  And  if  you 
will  earnestly  investigate,  besides  the  legitimate  use  of  human  concep- 


-.01 

tion,  you  will  find  that  the  Trinity  haa  enacted  three  most  wonderful 
species  of  birth.  And  truly  the  first  is,  because  Adam  has  been  fanhiotied 
of  the  slime  of  the  earth  ;  the  second,  that  seaman  was  forme  i' of  the  male; 
the  third,  which  is  heavenly,  is  that  Christ  proceeded  from  a  Virgin, 
Which  of  them  is  not  novel?  Which  of  them  is  not  wonderful? 
Which  of  them  can  be  comprehended  by  human  inquiry  unless  we 
adhere  to  faith  ?'  " 

George. — "Nothing  can  be  clearer  than  that  St.  Augustine  held 
the  body  of  the  first  man  to  have  been  created  immediately  and 
directly  by  the  will  of  the  Almighty," 

Doctor. — "Well,  let  us  pass  to  the  other  two  Doctors  quoted  by 
Mivart,  St,  Thomas  and  Suarez." 

Adele. — "Who  is  St,  Thomas,  uncle  ?" 

Doctor. — "Perhaps  the  greatest  intelleci  which  God  has  ever 
created.  He  was  born  in  1225  of  noble  parents,  in  a  small  town  called 
Aquinas,  in  the  southern  part  of  Italy,  hence  he  is  cal),ed  St.  Thomas 
of  Aquinas,  For  purity  of  doctrine,  for  depth  and  sublimity  of  mind, 
for  clearness,  precision,  and  order  in  treating  every  possible  theologi- 
cal and  philosophical  question  with  an  ease  and  felicity  of  language 
absolutely  matchless,  he  stands  preeminently  among  the  colossal  in- 
tellects of  mankind.  He  died  at  the  early  age  of  51,  and  during  that 
short  span  of  life  he  contrived  to  write  twenty-three  volumes,  in  folio, 
besides  spending  most  of  his  time  in  teaching  and  in  the  works  of  the 
ministry.  When  the  question  of  miracles  came  up  for  his  canoniza- 
tion Pope  John  XXII,  exclaimed  that  it  was  not  necessary  to  look  for 
miracles  in  his  case,  as  every  article  of  the  'Theological  Summa'  or 
abridgment  (his  best  work)  was  a  miracle.  The  authority  of  St. 
Thomas'  teaching  in  the  Church  is  immense,  and  our  present  Holy 
Father  has,  with  perfect  consciousness  of  the  wants  of  the  Church  at 
the  present  time,  urged  all  to  the  study  of  that  prince  among  the 
master  minds  of  mankind." 

Adele. — "After  such  a  testimony  of  the  grandeur  of  St.  Thomas' 
intellect,  I  am  anxious  to  hear  his  opinion," 

Doctor. — "  'It  is  to  be  held,'  says  St,  Thomas,  in  his  'Summa,'  first 
part,  question  19,  article  2d,  'that  the  formation  of  man's  body  could 
not  be  efiected  by  any  created  agency,  but  immediately  by  God.' 
See  article  4,  question  92,  I  quote  the  last:  'It  is  to  be  maintained 
that  the  natural  generation  of  any  kind  of  a  species  is  from  certain 
definite  matter.  Now,  the  matter  from  which  man  is  naturally  gen- 
erated is  the  human  semen.  Therefore  an  individual  of  the  human 
species  cannot  be  naturally  engendered  from  any  other  matter.  Now, 
God  alone,  as  the  Creator  of  nature,  can  produce  things  beyond  the 
order  of  nature.  Hence  God  alone  could  form  man  from  the  slime  of 
the  earth,  and  woman  from  man.'    Again,  in  the  'Commentary'  on 


162 

the  four  books,  bo  called,  of  the  sayings  of  Peter  Lombard,  Distinction 
18,  question  1,  article  1,  he  says:  'I  answer  by  saying  that  among 
Catholics  there  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  the  fact  of  the  woman  having 
been  formed  from  man's  rib,  whatever  fables  the  Jews  may  spout 
about  this  ;  because  it  is  no  more  against  reason  or  the  Divine  power 
to  suppose  that  the  woman  should  be  made  from  man's  body,  than 
that  the  body  of  man  should  be  formed  from  the  slime  of  the  earth, 
as  both  things  are  entirely  above  the  power  of  nature.' " 

George. — "Then  the  question  of  man's  body  being  created  directly 
by  God  is  again  settled,  so  far  as  St.  Thomas  is  concerned.  Let  us 
come  to  the  other  theologian  on  whom  Mivart  relies  so  much." 

Doctor.— "Suar<^  z  is  one  of  the  greatest  theologians  of  the  seven- 
teenth century.  He  was  born  in  Grenada  and  joined  early  the  So- 
ciety of  Jesus  and  honored  it  by  his  immense  labors  and  sublimity 
and  depth  of  intellect.  The  testimony  of  this  theologian  is  so  strong 
against  the  theory  that  I  cannot  imagine  how  Saint  George  could 
have  invoked  Suarez  in  favor  of  his  theory.  Here  are  the  words  of 
Suarez:  'It  is  to  be  maintained  that  man's  body  was  produced  imme- 
diately by  God.'  Now,  mark  what  follows :  'The  above  statement  is  a 
truth  of  Catholic  faith,  and  ia  taught  by  St.  Thomas  with  whom  agree 
all  other  Fathers  and  theologians'  ('De  Opere  sex  Dierum,' Lib.  3  ;  *De 
Hominis  Creatione,'  Edition  Vives)." 

Adele. — "Suarez  is  rather  hard  on  Saint  George." 

Doctor. — "All  modern  theologians  main<::ain  the  same.  It  suffices 
to  consult  Contenson,  Thommasinus,  Biiluart,  Perrone,  Palmieri, 
Cercia,  Mazzella,^chebeen,  Hurter,  SchoupDe,  Youngman,  Zigliara, 
Ubaldi,  etc.,  etc.  George,  please  to  read  the  words  of  Doctor  Schebeen 
of  Cologne,  which  I  have  marked  in  his  'Katholische  Dogmatik,'  vol. 
2,  Freiburg,  1878,  p.  144." 

George. — "  'Relatively,  to  the  first  constituent  part  of  man— the 
body — revelation  accords  with  the  dogma  of  the  Church  through  its 
teaching  about  man's  origin,  and  which  indirectly  embraces  all  men 
springing  from  the  first ;  a  doctrine  which  is  authenticated  -and 
authorized  by  the  natural  consciousness,  and  partly  by  the  sensible 
instinct  that  the  body  has  taken  its  component  material  form  respec- 
tively to  its  material  element  from  the  earth  ;  that  it  has  received  its 
definite  organization  as  man's  body,  not  through  the  blind,  accidental 
operation  of  physical  force,  but  according  to  a  special  and  definite 
divine  idea,  either  immediately  from  Ood,  as  in  the  case  of  the  first  man, 
or  mediately  through  the  plastic  force  of  a  principle  realizing  the 
same  nature.  It  is,  therefore,  a  heresy  to  pretend  that  man,  as  to  h  is  body, 
has  descended  from  the  ape  in  consequence  of  progressive  changes  come 
over  the  forme,  even  if  one  should  suppose  that  upon  the  complete 
evolution  of  the  form  God  simultaneously  created  the  soul.' " 


163 

Adele.— "Who  ia  the  other  author  whom  I  see  marked,  uncle?' 

Doctor, — "It  id  another  modern  theologian's  work,  Schouppe's 
('Course  of  Sacred  Scripture').  His  testimony  will  be  the  last  we  shall 
allege.  In  raising  the  question,  what  things  in  the  narrative  of 
Genesis  about  the  creation  of  the  world  and  of  man  are  dogmatically 
certain,  and  what  are  free  and  disputed,  he  answers  :  'are  dogmatically 
certain,  and  of  failh  the  following  points :  first,  God  in  the  beginning 
of  time  created  the  whole  universe  from  nothing ;  second,  God 
created  the  first  man  after  His  own  image  and  likeness  from  whom 
the  whole  of  mankind  takes  its  origin'  (Paris  ed.,  vol.  1,  part  second, 
p.  145)." 

Adele. — "It  is  evident  to  me  now  that  a  Catholic  cannot  maintain 
the  opinion  of  Snnt  George  Mivart,  that  the  body  of  man  may  be 
supposed  to  have  descended  from  an  apish  couple,  and  that,  when 
once  born  from  those  animals,  God  put  into  it  a  spiritual  principle. 
The  belief  of  the  Church  at  all  times  and  in  all  places,  as  attested  by 
the  Fathers,  Doctors  and  theologians  in  the  direct  immediate  creation 
of  the  body  of  man  by  God,  utterly  excludes  and  repudiates  such  sup- 
position." 

George.— "Besides,  I  reckon  philosophy  would  have  a  great  deal 
to  say  against  such  supposition,  as  we  said  in  the  beginning." 

Doctor. — ''Certainly  it  has,  and  as  you  have  suggested  it,  you  will 
please  to  give  us  your  thoughts  on  the  subject  at  our  next  meet- 
ing." 

Adele.— "But,  uncle,  before  we  pass  to  the  philosophy  of  the  thing, 
I  am  anxious  to  know  what  mysteries  of  the  Christian  dispensation 
did  the  fathers  of  the  Christian  Church  see  in  the  creation  of  woman 
from  man's  rib  ?" 

Doctor. — "I  am  glad  you  mentioned  it,  Adele,  for  I  should  not 
have  liked  to  omit  that  explanation.  I  will  give  you  the  explanation 
of  St.  Augustine  and  St.  John  Chrysostom,  who  are  followed  by  all 
the  rest  of  the  Fathers.  The  first  in  explaining  ihe  words  of  St.  John 
the  Evangelist,  relating  the  Passion  of  Oar  LjrJ  :  'One  of  the  sol- 
diers with  a  spear  opened  His  (Our  Lord's)  side,  and  immediately  there 
came  out  blood  and  water,'  says,  'Of  a  set  purpose  did  the  Evangelist 
use  the  word  opened,  and  did  not  say  struck  or  wounded,  or  something 
else,  but  opened,  in  order  that  the  door  of  life  might  somewhat  be 
thrown  open,  from  whence  originated  the  sacraments  of  the  Church, 
without  which  none  can  enter  into  that  which  is  true  life.  ...  In 
view  of  this  was  the  first  woman  formed  from  the  side  cf  the  sleeping 
man,  and  called  life  and  the  mother  of  the  living.  For  she  presaged 
great  good  before  the  great  evil  of  prevarication.  This  second  Adam, 
having  bowed  His  head,  slept  on  the  Cross  that  a  spouse  might  hence 
be  formed  to  Him  which  should  emanate  from  the  side  of  a  sleeping 


184 

one.'  'O,  death  by  which  the  dead  return  to  life!'  What  can  be  purer 
than  that  blood?    What  more  salutary  than  that  wound  ?" 

Adele. — Beautiful,  indeed,  uncle!  I  seem  to  see  it.  Adam  is 
sleeping,  and  from  his  breast,  which  God  has  opened,  and  from  one  of 
his  ribs,  woman  is  formed,  the  life  and  mother  of  all  living.  Our 
dearest  Lord,  the  second  Adam,  sleeps  the  sleep  of  death  on  the  cross ; 
His  sacred  side  is  opened  in  order  that  the  Church,  His  beloved 
spouse,  might  be  formed  out  of  the  blood  and  water  which  issued  from 
that  side,  because  the  Church  is  made  up  principally  of  the  sacra- 
ments, the  chief  of  which  are  baptism  represented  by  the  water,  and 
the  Holy  Eucharist  represented  by  the  blood;  and  thus  the  Church 
was  formed  out  of  the  side  of  her  Divine  spouse,  and  became  the  life 
and  the  mother  of  all  the  living." 

George. — "Excellently  said.  Miss  Adele." 

Doctor. — "The  other  is  St.  John  Chrysostom  in  the  sermon  ex- 
plaining the  same  text :  'I  have  said  that  that  blood  and  that  waier 
represented  baptism  and  the  Holy  Eucharist.  For  on  these  is  founded 
the  Church,  on  the  laver  of  regeneration  and  renovation  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.  I  say  on  baptism  and  the  holy  mysteries  which  appear  to 
have  issued  from  the  side.  Hence  Christ  from  His  side  constructed 
the  Church,  as  from  the  side  of  Adam  was  formed  Eve.  For  which 
reason  St.  Paul  testifies,  saying,  'we  are  of  His  body  and  of  His  bones 
meaning  to  signify  that  side.  Because  as  from  Adam's  side  God 
caused  the  woman  to  be  produced,  so  from  Christ's  own  side  water 
and  blood  emanated,  by  means  of  which  the  Church  might  be  re- 
deemed.' " 

Adele.— "I  see  the  same  beautiful  thought ;  and  the  mystery  of 
the  institution  of  God's  Church,  the  bride  of  Christ,  seen  by  all  the 
Fathers  in  the  formation  of  woman  from  Adam's  rib." 

Doctor.— "And  mark  well,  both  of  you,  that  on  Saint  Mivart's 
supposition  not  only  the  whole  mysterious  significance  and  prophetic 
presaging  of  the  peculiar  formation  of  woman  is  swept  away,  but  the 
narration  of  Genesis  loses  every  possible  meaning,  I  ecause  on  Mivart's 
supposition  woman  must  have  descended,  naturally,  in  the  course  of 
natural  laws,  from  an  apish  couple  like  man,  and  if  so,  what  possible 
sense  can  we  attach  to  Moses'  narrative  ?  It  becomes  a  legend,  a 
myth,  a  pious  fairy  sketch  and  imagination  of  th3  sacred  writer. 
Now,  the  latter  supposition  is  utterly  untenable,  and  among  all  theo- 
logians one  only  has  ever  been  found  to  indulge  in  it,  L,  "as 
followed  by  none,  and  concemued  by  »li  wuu  uuusidered  it  as  a  sheer 
extravagance.". 


165 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ARTICLE. 

HAS  MIVART'S  opinion  ANY  THEOLOGICAL  GROUNDS  IN   ITS  SUPPORT  ? 

Doctor. — "If  you  paid  strict  attention  to  what  we  said  at  our  laat 
meeting  you  will  have  observed  that  Saint  George's  opinion  contra- 
dicts in  about  five  or  six  difierent  ways  the  ordinary  infallible  teach- 
ing of  the  Church  as  to  the  origin  of  man's  body." 

George. — "It  would  be  well  to  point  them  out  separately,  that  one 
may  easily  perceive  and  remember  them." 

Doctor. — "That  opinion,  in  the  first  place,  assumes  that  man's  body 
was  not  created  immediately  and  directly  by  a  distinct  special  act  of 
God's  infinite  will,  and  the  daily  ordinary  teaching  of  the  Church 
affirms  the  contrary,  that  is,  that  God  did  immediately  and  directly 
form  man's  body,  and  that  of  the  woman.  Secondly,  the  opinion  of 
Saint  George  takes  for  granted  that  there  was  nothing  extraordinary 
or  surprising  about  the  formation  of  both,  whereas  the  ordinary  teach- 
ing of  God's  Church  is  that  the  whole  thing  was  entirely  out  of  all 
ordinary  course,  and  quite  extraordinary  and  wonderful.  Thirdly, 
the  opinion  of  Mivart  implies  that  man's  body  must  have  come  from 
the  natural  sexual  union  of  two  lower  animals,  male  and  female,  who 
would  naturally  be  called  its  parents,  and  the  Fathers,  Doctors  and 
Theologians  of  the  Church  utterly  reject  any  such  supposition,  and 
insist  that  Adam  had  no  parents." 

Adele. — "I  see  clearly  all  the  diflferent  aspects  in  which  that  opin- 
ion is  opposed  to  what  the  Fathers  have  taught." 

■  Doctor. — "Fourthly,  that  opinion  supposes  that  man's  body  would 
have  sprung  from  the  slime  of  the  earth,  only  mediately  and  in  a  far- 
off  way  in  the  sense  that  the  flesh  which  man  would  have  inherited 
from  his  apish  progenitors,  when  it  started  the  first  step  on  its  way  to 
evolution,  was  indeed  slime,  but  in  no  other  sense,  whilst  the  Church, 
by  her  ordinary  teaching,  proclaims  from  the  house  tops  that  Adam 
was  formed  from  the  untilled,  uncut,  undisturbed  earth,  not  submitted 
to  the  action  of  seeds,  or  plough.  Finally,  the  opinion  of  Saint  George 
removes  and  destroys  all  possible  analogy  between  the  creation  and 
formation  of  man  and  woman,  and  the  conception  of  Our  Blessed 
Lord  in  the  virgin  cloister  of  Mary,  and  the  formation  of  the  Church 
Christ's  holy  bride  from  this  wounded  side,  as  Eve  was  formed  from 
man's  side  ;  an  analogy  insisted  upon  by  all  the  Fathers,  and  which  is 
founded  on  the  philosophy  of  faith  as  proclaimed  by  St.  Paul." 

George. — "But,  doctor.  Professor  Mivart  claims  that  the  doctrine 
of  evolution  was  held  by  three  of  the  greatest  Doctors  of  the  Church, 


166 

St.  Augustine,  St.  Thomas,  and  Suarez,  and  he  brings  forward  testi- 
monies from  the  works  of  those  three  to  make  good  his  claim," 

Adele. — "But  did  we  not  read  the  testimony  of  those  three  Doctors, 
proving  in  a  manner  which  can  admit  no  possible  doubt  or  hesitation 
that  they  held  the  body  of  man  to  have  been  formed  immediately  and 
directly  by  a  special  act  of  Omnipotence  by  God  Himself  ?" 

George. — "Certainly  we  did." 

Adele. — "Then  how  can  they  hold  evolution  ?  Can  we  imagine  that 
they  contradict  themselves?" 

Doctor.— "It  is  not  necessary  to  go  so  far  as  that,  Adele.  Suppose 
that  the  testimonies  alleged  from  those  three  Doctors  really  proved 
that  they  maintained  the  opinion  of  evolution  in  general,  it  would  by 
no  means  follow  that  they  applied  that  opinion  to  man  also,  as  the 
texts  we  brought  forward  to  the  contrary  clearly  and  incontestably 
prove.  We  said  in  one  of  our  conversations  that  the  opinion  main- 
taining evolution,  as  far  as  animal  brutes  is  concerned,  is  an  open 
question.  Cocsequently.  St.  Augustine,  St.  Thomas,  and  Suarez  might 
have  held  evolution  and  yet  not  apply  it  to  man.  So  Mivart  and  all 
those  Catholics  who  have  a  leaning  for  evolution  as  applying  to  all 
beings,  man  included,  and  try  to  support  their  opinion  by  some 
few  words  of  those  three  Doctors  seeming  to  teach  evolution  in  gen- 
eral, labor  under  a  very  grave  mistake,  and  fail  to  perceive  that,  even 
supposing  those  Doctors  to  have  expressed  views  favoring  evolution, 
in  the  texts  they  allege,  all  that  would  not  prove  that  they  applied 
the  same  views  to  man.  They  should  prove  by  clear,  distinct  testi- 
monies bearing  immediately  and  directly  on  the  subject  matter,  that 
man's  body  was  descended  from  some  bruie  animal.  Until  they  have 
done  that  the  authorities  they  cite  avail  them  not  a  ]ot." 

Adele. — "But  did  those  three  Doctors  really  express  views  favoring 
evolution  in  general  ?" 

Doctor. — "Yea,  as  much  as  you  and  I.  But  to  the  satisfaction  of 
everyone  we  will  examine  the  texts  quoted  by  Mivart  and  see  what 
they  really  teach.  Now,  George,  let  us  have  the  texts  from  St. 
Augustine,  but  try  to  be  as  plain  in  your  statements  as  you  possibly 
can,  otherwise  Adele  will  not  be  able  to  follow  us  and  may  be  bored 
to  death." 

George. — "As  far  as  1  can  understand  the  texts  given  by  Saint 
George  in  testimony  of  St  Augustine  favoring  evolution,  amount  to 
this :  That  God  created  all  things  together,  inasmuch  as  He,  in  the 
matter  which  He  created  from  nothing,  implanted  the  power,  the  seed 
of  all  things,  which  would  in  the  course  of  time  be  evolved  and  de- 
veloped into  anything.  I  need  only  quote  the  following  words; 
'Certain  hidden  seeds  of  all  things,  which  are  corporally  and  visibly 
born,  are  hid  in  the  physical  elements  of  this  world.  'Omnium  quippe 


167 

lenim  qiti<e  rorporalUcf  vis'hiliterquc  nascuntur  ocru'ti  qaiedani  semina 
■>n  istis  corforeis  mundi  hujus  dementis  latent.^  ('Do  Genesi  ad  Literam,' 
Lit).  V.  ch.  5.)  And  he  goes  on  to  say  :  'As  ia  the  grain  are  invisibly 
contained  all  those  things  which  gradually  develop  into  a  tree,  so  this 
world  is  to  be  thought,  as  God  created  all  things  together,  tc  have  had 
at  once  all  those  things  which  in  it  and  with  it  were  made  when  the 
day  was  made,  not  only  the  heavens,  with  the  sun,  and  the  moon,  and 
the  star?,  but  also  all  those  things  which  the  water  and  the  earth 
potentially  and  causatively  produced  before  they  appeared  in  the 
course  of  time.'     ('De  Generi  ad  Lit.,'  Lib.  v.,  ch.  22  )" 

Adele. — "So  it  is  clear,  from  these  texts,  that  St.  Augustine  teaches 
three  things  :  first,  that  God  created  all  things  together ;  second,  in  the 
sense  that  in  creating  matter  He  implanted  in  it  the  power  or  the 
germ  of  deveh  ping  into  anything ;  third,  that  all  things  which  ap- 
peared in  the  course  of  time  were  the  product  and  the  development  of 
those  seeds  and  germs  hidden  in  the  primitive  elements.    All  that 
seems  to  be  evolution  with  a  vengeance,  I  must  confess." 
Doctor. — "And  yet  St.  Augustine  is  not  an  evolutionist." 
George. — "How,  then,  do  you  explain  St.  Augustine  ?" 
Doctor. — "It  is  not  necessary  for  me  to  explain  anything.    Saint 
Thomas,  whom  Saint  George  and  compeers  would  place  oq  their  side, 
has    explained    it    for    me    with    that  decisive  glance  and  lucidity 
v;hich    is    peculiar    to    himself.      The    question    hinges    on    this  : 
What    did    St.     Augustine    mean    by    matter    or    the    primitive 
elements  which    God    created,    having     received     by    the    Creator 
the  power,    the  germ,    the    seed    of    being    developed    into    any- 
thing ?     If  St.  Augustine  meant  by  that  that  matter  had  received  the 
active  force  to  develop  itself  into  anything  without  the  aid  of  any- 
body, and  without  any  other  act  of  the  Creator,  then  Saint  George  and 
CompaLy  are  right,  St.  Augustine  is  an  evolutionist.    If,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  holy  Doctor,  by  saying  that  matter  received  the  capacity, 
the  germ,  the  seed  of  being  developed  into  anything,  meant  it  in  a 
passive  sense,  that  is,  undfrstood  it  in  the  sense  that  it  was  so  made 
by  its  natural  constitution  as  to  present  no  obstacle  to  be  moulded 
into  anything,  and  that  not  by  a  native  force,  but  by  God's  action, 
then  St.  Augustine  is  not  an  evolutionist,  and  Saint  George  and  Com- 
pany are  mistaken  in  their  understanding  of  his  teachings.    Now,  St. 
Thomas  interprets  St.  Augustine  in  the  latter  sente.    In  the  'Summa 
Theologica,'  Part  First,  question  91,  article  2,  where  he  maintains  that 
man's  body  was  created  immediately  by  God,  he  proposes  to  himself 
the  following  objection:    'According  to  St.  Augustine,  man,  as  to  his 
body,  was  made  first  among  the  works  of  the  six  days,  according  to 
causative  reasons  which  God  implanted  in  every  material  creature, 
and  afterward  it  was  actually  formed.     But  that  which   preexists  in 


168 

some  corporal  creature,  according  to  causal  reason,  can  be  produced 
by  some  corporal  agency.  Hence  the  human  body  has  been  the  pro- 
duct of  a  created  agency  and  not  the  immediate  effect  of  God.' 
How  does  St.  Thomas  answer?  Listen:  'A.  thing  is  said  tq 
preexist  in  a  creature  according  to  productive  or  causal  rea- 
sons in  two  ways.  In  the  first  way,  according  to  a  capacity  both  active 
and  passive,  that  is,  not  only  that  some  thing  can  be  produced  from 
preexisting  matter,  but  that  some  preexisting  creature  can  produce 
it.  In  the  second  way,  after  a  passive  capacity  only,  in  the  case  that  a 
thing  can  be  produced  by  God  from  preexistirg  matter;  and  in  this 
sense,  according  to  St,  Augustine,  man's  body  was  preexisting  in  the 
works  already  made  according  to  causal  reasons.'    (Ad  Quartum.)" 

idele. — "Then  when  we  hear  that  causative  reasons  or  germs  were 
implanted  by  the  Creator  in  the  first  elements,  we  must  understand 
that  God  made  matter  so  as  to  be  able,  under  His  action,  to  receive 
any  form  or  change,  but  not  to  do  so  by  itself  without  the  special  act 
of  God?" 

Doctor. — "Certainly.  St.  Thomas,  in  the  8rd  article  of  the  92J 
question,  where  he  proves  the  formation  of  woman  from  Adam's  body, 
raises  the  same  question  from  St.  Augustine,  and  answers  in  the  same 
way.  'The  woman's  body  preexisted  in  conformity  with  causal  rea- 
sons in  the  first  works,  not  in  an  active  capacity,  but  in  a  passive 
capacity  only,  that  is,  relatively  to  the  active  power  of  the  Creator. 
(Ad  Secundtim.)" 

George. — "Well,  it  is  clear  that  St.  Thomas  interprets  St.  Augus- 
tine's theory,  that  all  things  preexisted  germinally  and  potentially  in 
the  first  created  elements  in  a  passive  sense,  inasmuch  as  matter  was 
so  made  as,  under  the  action  of  God  to  be  capable  of  being  moulded 
into  any  thing.  But  what  then  ?  The  question  is ;  does  St.  Thomas 
interpret  him  rightly  ?" 

Doctor. — "St.  Thomas  interprets  St.  Augustine  as  the  latter  inter- 
prets himself,  since  in  other  places  St.  Augustine  flatly  maintains  the 
special  actual  creation  of  each  species." 

Adele. — "Is  it  possible  ?" 

Doctor. — "Nothing  more  true.  George,  please  take  that  volume  of 
the  holy  Doctor  and  read  the  passages  marked." 

George. — "  'We  must  believe  God  to  be  the  Author  and  Maker  of 
all  things  which  are  originated,  visible  and  invisible ;  not  as  to  vices 
which  are  against  nature,  but  as  to  the  natures  themselves,  and  that 
tliere  is  not  a  creature,  which  has  not  received  from  Him  tlie  beginning  and 
perfection  of  its  kind  and  kuhstance'  ('De  Genesi  ad  Literam'  says,  ch.  4, 
part  18).  Again :  'It  has  not  been  said  that  God  made  darkness,  be- 
cause God  created  the  species  themselves,  not  privations  which  appertain  to 
nothing.'    (The  same  work,  ch.  5,  part  25.)    Again,  in  the  same  work; 


169 

'God  both  makes  aud  arranges  certaia  things  ,  others  he  merely  puts 
in  order.  Thus  He  both  mnkrs  and  arranges  the  species  and  natures 
thenifitlves.  He  does  not  eflect  the  privations  of  species  or  the  defects 
of  natures,  but  only  regulates  them' — 'Quaedam  et  facit  Deus  et 
ordinal,  quaedam  vero  tantuni  ordinat.  Jta  species  natur'isqite  ipms  et 
facd  et  ordinat  ,•  p:fv;Uiones  autem  Hpecierum  defectueque  uaturarum 
uon  facit  sed  ordiuat  taatun:    " 

Doctor. — "Now,  if  St.  Augustine  holds  that  God  Himself  created 
every  species,  how  could  He  maintain  that  ihey  were  evolved 
by  the  germinal  and  potential  capacity  of  matter  taken  in  an  active 
sense?  In  the  interpretation  of  St.  Thomas  everything  goes 
on  smoothly.  St.  Augustine  is  right  when  he  teaches  that  God  en- 
dowed matter  with  potential  and  germinal  capacity  to  be  moulded  into 
anything,  and  he  is  also  right  when  he  teaches  that  God  Himself 
creates  the  species  aiid  nature  of  things,  because  it  is  under  God's 
special  action  that  matter  yields  whatever  God  wishes  to  produce 
from  it."' 

Adele. — "I  think  the  matter  is  disposed  of  as  far  as  St.  Augustine 
is  concerned.     Nor  is  Mivart  right  with  regard  to  St.  Thomas." 

Doctor. — "Well,  George,  what  does  Mivart  allege  to  make  St. 
Thomas  an  evolutionist  ?" 

George.— "He  cites  the  saying  of  St.  Thomas,  that  'in  the  first  in- 
stitution of  nature  we  do  not  look  for  miracles  but  for  the  laws  of 
nature.'  (1  part,  qu.  G7,  art.  4,  ad  3.)  Hence,  he  concludes  that,  as  the 
holding  of  a  special  creation  for  each  species  would  be  a  miracle,  and 
not  a  result  of  the  laws  of  nature,  St.  Thomas  maintains  the  spon- 
taneous natural  evolution  of  species." 

Adele. — "Well,  uncle,  what  is  the  answer  to  that?" 

Doctor. — "The  answer  is,  that  St.  Thomas,  from  the  principle 
quoted,  holds  the  very  opposite  of  what  Saint  George  wishes  to  make 
Jut,  and  I  think  that  Saint  George  was  in  duty  bound  to  understand  in 
what  sense  St.  Thomas  holds  that  principle  before  drawing  his  con- 
clusion, and  to  be  extremely  lenient  with  Saint  George,  we  have  a 
right  to  accuse  him  of  unworthy  precipitancy  in  jumping  to  a  con- 
clusion not  at  all  warranted,  and  the  very  contrary  to  that  which  St, 
Thomas  draws  from  the  principle.  In  his  commentary  on  the  book 
of  sentences,  1  Diet.  IS,  quest.  1,  art.  1,  ad  5,  the  holy  Doctor  explains 
the  saying  of  St.  Augustine  as  follows;  'The  institution  of  natural 
things  may  be  couf^idered  iu  two  different  ways  with  regard  to  the 
manner  of  creating,  and  in  respect  to  those  which  are  consequent  on 
the  things  created.  The  mode  of  creating  could  not  be  natural,  as  no 
certain  natural  principle  had  preceded,  the  activity  and  passiveness  of 
which  could  have  bee u  sufficient  to  naturally  produce  those  effects, 
and  therefore  it  required  a  supernatural  agency  to  produce  the  first 


170 

principle  of  species  as  that  the  body  of  man  should  be  formed  fiom 
the  earth  and  woman's  body  from  the  rib,  and  the  like.  But  the 
l)ropertie3  appertaining  to  the  created  natures  must  not  be  attributed 
to  a  miracle,  as  that  wuters  should  miraculously  remain  in  the  sky 
The  creation  of  things  does  require  a  supernatural  agency,  and  the 
saying  of  St.  Augustine  that  ia  the  first  institution  of  nature  we 
should  not  have  recourse  to  miracles  but  to  the  natural  laws,  applies 
only  to  the  properties  of  the  nature  created  and  the  laws  by  which 
they  are  regulated,  and  by  no  means  to  the  mode  of  cre.iting  these 
natures,  which  always  is  and  must  be  beyond  and  above  any  natural 
agency." 

Adele. — "Dear  me,  how  you  men  can  mix  up  things  when  you 
want  to.  All  thit  St.  Augustine  meant  by  that  saying,  is  that  the 
ceation  of  all  things  is  always  by  an  activity  above  nature,  that  is, 
G  d.  That  there  are  certain  properties  attached  to  each  nature  which 
naturally  flow  from  it,  and  which  must  be  always  attributed  to  the 
nature  as  a  necessary  consequence,  and  not  to  a  miracle.  For  in- 
s  ance,  take  matter;  how  does  it  exist?  There  is  no  principle  in 
niture  to  cause  it.  God  therefore  must  create  it.  Take  some  prop- 
erties of  matter — say,  ineriia,  divisibility,  attraction,  and  so  on;  these 
properties,  if  found  in  it,  must  be  attributed  to  the  nature  of  matter, 
and  not  to  a  miracle  or  extraordinary  action." 

George. — "Very  good  indeed." 

Doctor. — ''If  Saint  George  and  Company  had  taken  the  trouble  to 
understand  the  sense  ia  which  St.  Thomas  explained  that  saying  of 
St.  Augustine  in  the  place  he  quotes,  he  would  have  found  that  the  say 
ing  will  not  help  a  jot  as  proving  evolution,  because  in  that  place  S'. 
Thomas  is  remarking  on  a  theory  of  St.  Basil,  intended 
to  account  for  light  and  darkness  of  the  first  day  by  the 
emission  or  contracting  of  light  of  the  luminous  body.  St.  Thomas 
remarks  that  the  theory  cannot  hold,  because  it  is  contrary  to  the 
nat'ire  of  a  luminous  body  to  withdraw  its  light;  that  can  only  be 
done  by  a  miracle  and  in  the  first  institution  of  nature;  we 
do  not  seek  for  miracles,  but  for  what  the  natures  of  things  are 
capable  of." 

Adele. — "Well,  let  us  pass  to  the  other  great  theologian  whom 
Saint  George  invokes  in  his  favor.  Mr.  George,  what  is  this  testi- 
mony ?" 

George. — "Mivart  does  not  give  any  text  of  Suarez,  but  says  that 
he  'has  a  separate  section  in  opposition  to  those  who  maintain  the 
distinct  creation  of  the  various  kinds  or  substantial  forms  of  organic 
life'  ('The  Genesis  of  Species,'  Introd.,  page  31.   Appleton,  1871.)" 

Doctor. — "Saint  George  is  misrepresenting  Suarez,  either  through 
his  gre  it  anxiety  to  find  supporters  for  his  strange  theory,  or  through 


171 

precipitation  and  haste  in  not  caring  to  go  deeper  into  the  matter  and 
to  ascertain  the  real  opinion  of  that  great  theologian.  (The  text  S.iint 
George  quotes  is  from  the  fifteenth  Disputation  of  the  first  volume  of 
'Metaphysics',  section  2,  numbers  2,  9, 13, 15.)  You  are  to  understand, 
Adele,  that  the  schoolmen  called  all  principle  animating  matter,  such 
as  the  active  principle  in  plants,  and  sensitive  principle  in  animals, 
substantial  forms.  Now  Suarez  teaches  in  the  section  cited  by  Saint 
George  that  the  substantial  forms  of  plants  and  animals  are  not  pro- 
duced by  creation,  but  are  evolved  from  matter  itself,  according  to 
natural  agents  In  force  of  this  be  all  at  once  ranks  poor  Suarez  among 
evolutionists,  but  the  acute  scientist  failed  or  did  not  care  to  perceive 
that  Suarez  was  speaking  of  the  substantial  forms  considered  after 
all  species  are  produced;  but  with  regard  to  the  latter  he  maintains 
that  their  forms  were  evolved  from  matter  indeed,  but  by  a  special  ac- 
tion of  God." 

George. — "But  how  can  we  ascertain  that  such  is  the  interpreta' 
tion  of  Suarez's  theory  ?' 

Doctor. — "By  other  passages  and  works.  Surely  an  author  cannot 
say  everything  at  tne  same  time  and  place  on  subjects  which  have  a 
great  variety  and  diflerence  of  aspects  and  relations.  Besides,  the  real 
opinion  of  an  author,  as  Saint  George  too  well  knows,  must  be  gath- 
ered from  what  he  says  and  maintains  when  he  is  treating  of  the  sub- 
lect  professedly  and  directly.  Now  Suarez  clearly  and  distinctly  main- 
tains, in  the  work  on  the  '  Creation  of  the  Six  Days,'  that  plants  and 
animals  were  immediately  and  directly  produced  by  God  from  matter, 
ttierefore  they  cannot  have  been  produced  by  evolution.  In  the  sec- 
ond book  of  that  "work,  chapter  seventh,  after  having  given  the  opinion 
ot  those  who  held  that  plants  had  been  gradually  evolved  from  matter 
by  the  natural  forces,  he  says .  '  The  contrary  opinion  is  to  be  held, 
that  IS,  that  God  produced  on  this  day  herbs,  trees  and  other  vege- 
tables actually  in  their  own  species  and  nature.  This  is  the  common 
opinion  ol  the  Fathers  St.  Basil,  St.  Ambrose,  St.  Chrysostom,  St.  John 
Damascene,  Theodoretus,  St.  Cyril,  Beda.  The  same  is  held  by  St. 
Thomas.  .  .  .  But  there  is  a  special  reason  with  regard  to  animals, 
because  they  cannot  be  produced  from  their  seed ;  since  the  seed  must 
be  separated  from  the  animal,  nor  can  it  naturally  be  preserved  apart 
from  tbe  animal  or  produce  its  operation.  Hence  it  was  necessary  that 
all  animal  species  should  at  fir  d  be  immediately  createdbythe  Author  ofna- 
t.urttn  one  or  some  individuals.  (iV.  2.)  Idea  necessarium  fuit  species 
s ingulas  eorum  immediate  ab  audore  naiurss in  aiiquo,  vet  inaliquibus  in- 
div'duts  prirno  fieri.  '' 

George —"But,  Doctor,  there  is  Father  Harper,  in  his  'Metaphysics 
of  the  Schools,  wno  proves  that  all  the  Fathers  and  schoolmen  admit- 
ted evolution.' 


Adele. — "What  kind  of  evolution  ?" 

George. — "Evolution  in  its  universal  sense  and  application," 

Doctor. — "Well,  how  badly  are  poor  authors,  who  work  so  hard  in 
writing  books  and  in  endeavoring  to  make  things  clear,  treated  by  a 
genus  of  superficial  ignoramuses,  who  run  over  such  works  just  to  find 
a  phrase,  a  word,  a  colon  or  semicolon  which  they  can  twist  and  dis 
tort  into  their  own  opinion,  utterly  reckless  of  the  rest.  Adele,  take 
Father  Harper's  Second  Volume,  page  743,  and  read  the  words 
marked. 

Adele.— " 'Evidently  there  must  have  been  a  beginning  to  each 
higher  family  of  living  things.  There  must  have  been  a  first  plant,  a 
first  fish,  a  first  bird,  a  first  quadruped.  Hereditary  propagation  must 
have  been  established  subsequently  to  the  production  of  the  first  pair 
in  each  family  of  life.  That  these  primitive  pairs  then  should  have 
been  evolved  out  of  the  potentiality  of  matter  without  parentage,  in 
other  words,  that  the  matter  (in  itself  utterly  incapable  of  the  task) 
should  have  been  proximately  disposed  for  such  evol.ution,  belongs  to 
a  special  Divine  Administration :  In  other  words,  God  must  have  been 
the  sole  efficient  cause  of  the  organization  requisite,  and  therefore,  in 
the  strictest  sense,  is  said  to  have  formed  such  pairs,  and  in  particular 
the  human  body,  out  of  the  preexistent  matter.'  " 

George. — "Then  in  what  sense  do  the  Fathers  and  schoolmen  hold 
evolution  ?" 

Doctor. — "First,  in  the  sense  that  plants  and  animals  were  not 
created  from  nothing,  but  evolved  by  God  from  matter.  Secondly, 
they  hold  evolution  within  the  species  as  we  explained  in  one  of  our 
interviews. 

Adele. — "But,  uncle,  I  have  heard  somebody  say  that  Father 
Secchi  was  an  evolutionist  ?" 

Doctor.— "Well,  you  may  as  well  read  his  words  also,  and  with 
them  we  will  put  an  end  to  this  long  conversation." 

Adele. — "  'The  idea  of  successive  transformation  understood  with 
proper  prudence  and  moderation  is  not  inconsistent  either  with  reason 
or  religion.  In  fact,  if  we  do  not  pretend  that  everything  was  pro- 
duced by  means  of  pure  inborn  native  forces  of  brute  matter,  but 
admit  that  such  foices  were  imparted  to  it  by  the  First  Cause,  which 
created  matter,  and  gave  power  to  produce  certain  efiects,  there  is  no 
obstacle  to  believing  that,  so  long  as  no  new  force  is  called  into  play, 
various  organisms  may  be  developed  in  one  way  rather  than  in 
another,  and  thus  give  rise  to  different  beings.  But  when  from  a 
series  of  such  beings  we  pass  to  another  which  contains  a  new  prin- 
ciple, the  question  altogether  changes.  From  the  vegetable  without 
sensibility  we  cannot  pass  to  the  animal,  which  has  sensations 
without  a  new  power  which  CTcnot    spring  from  the  organization 


173 

alone  or  matter.  And  the  same  may  be  said,  only  with  stronger  rea- 
son, when  from  the  brute  animal  we  wish  to  travel  to  man,  who 
reasons,  reflects,  and  has  consciousness.  •  A  new  principle  then  must 
be  associated  to  the  physical  force  of  matter  to  obtain  such  results' 
('Discourse  on  the  Grandeur  of  Creation')." 


TWENTY-SIXTH  ARTICLE. 

IS  mivart's  opinion  scientifically  and  philosophically  texable? 

George. — "It  is  with  great  curiosity  and  interest,  Doctor,  that  I 
shall  hear  your  remarks  on  Sir  George's  theory  with  regard  to  the 
origin  of  man's  body.  I  believe  you  said  that  that  question  is  not 
tenable,  either  scientifically  or  philosophically.  Now  I  presume  to 
think  that  it  will  be  very  hard  to  prove  that." 

Adele.— "Why  ?" 

George. — "On  account  of  the  standing  and  rank  which  Mivart  en- 
joys among  the  scientists  of  to  day." 

Adele. — "That  is  a  very  poor  reason  to  my  mind,  Mr.  George. 
Why,  Sir  George  cannot  hold  a  higher  rank  among  the  scientists  of 
the  present  time  than  Darwin,  Huxley,  Haeckel,  Wallace,  Grant  and 
the  whole  galaxy  of  respectable,  highly-to-be  honored,  evolutionists; 
and  yet,  if  I  must  judge  from  the  various  specimens  I  have  had  in 
the  course  of  our  conversations,  they  are  anything  but  a  model  of 
reasoning  of  accurate  observation,  of  serious,  earnest,  sound  judgment. 
On  the  contrary,  they  have  appeared  to  me  as  a  set  of  men  highly  and 
blindly  prejudiced  in  favor  of  a  preconceived  pet  theory,  as  a  mother 
is  pre  disposed  in  favor  of  a  child,  no  matter  how  plain,  how  distorted, 
how  monstrous  nature  may  have  made  it ;  that  under  the  possession 
of  such  prejudice  they  shut  their  eyes  to  every  clear,  well  ascertained 
fact  which  may  militate  against  it,  build  a  grand  and  imposing  struc- 
ture on  any  stray  fact  which  may  have  the  least  and  the  remotest  re- 
semblance in  their  favor,  and,  above  all,  drawing  most  liberally  and 
largely  on  the  heedlessness  and  credulity  of  their  readers,  take  pecu- 
liar care  to  assert  themselves  loudly  and  confidently,  and  to  look  with 
utter  disdain  and  supreme  superciliousness  on  any  one  who  dares  to 
dissent  from  them.  Such  is  the  character  of  your  scientists  aa  I  have 
gathered  it  in  the  course  of  our  interviews.  Why  should  your  Saint 
George  be  wholly  exempt  from  the  common  and  general  characteris- 
tics of  thore  of  his  clags?" 

Doctor. — "The  fact  that  in  refuting  Darwin's  theory  he  has  substi- 
tuted none  to  support  evolution,  except  some  unknown  and  mysteri- 
ous law  of  nature ;  the  fact  that  in  endeavoring  to  prop  up  his  opinion 
with  the  authority  of  St.  Augustine,  St.  Thomas  and  Suarez  he  has 


174 

acted  with  such  precipitation  and  carelessness  as  not  to  ascertain  the 
real  meaning  of  the  words  he  quoted  when,  as  in  the  case  of  St. 
Thomas  and  Suarez,  the  authors  themselves  explain  in  what 
sense  the  words  on  which  Saint  George  relies  so  much 
to  strengthen  his  position,  ought  to  be  taken  the  fact  that 
Saint  George,  instead  of  looking  for  the  opinion  of  those 
Doctors  in  works  and  places  where  they  discuss  the  subject  exprofesso, 
has  gone  out  of  his  way  to  look  for  it  when  they  are  treating  of  difler' 
ent  subjects  and  merely  alluding  to  the  other  in  a  very  limited,  re- 
stricted sense,  all  this  proves  clearly  that  he  is  not  exempt  from  the 
general  faihng  of  scientists,  of  exaggerating  to  any  extent  the  appar- 
ent strength  of  their  proofs,  and  of  supposing  all  their  readers  super- 
ficial and  careless,  incapable  of  weighing  those  proofs  and  of  rating 
them  at  their  just  value.  And  now  for  the  proofs  that  Saint  George's 
opinion  is  neither  scientific  nor  philosophical.  In  the  first  place,  for 
what  reason  has  Saint  George  invented  his  hypothesis  ?  To  account 
for  the  origin  of  man's  body  by  means  of  evolution.  Man's  body  is 
the  outcome,  the  ofispring  of  an  apish  couple.  Why  ?  Because  the 
patural  law  of  evolution  must  have  its  play ;  because  man's  body  can 
easily  be  eflected  by  the  exercise  of  natural  forces.  Very  well,  then. 
And  why  do  yc-u  stop  at  man's  body  and  not  make  the  whole  man, 
both  body  and  soul,  the  result  of  the  same  natural  laws  ?  If  the  body 
can  be  produced  by  the  law  of  evolution,  why  not  the  soul  ?" 

George. — "Mivart  replies,  because  nature  cannot  evolve  a  spiritual 
substance;  that  must  be  efiected  by  God  Himself.' 

Doctor. — "I  know  Mivart's  assertion  that  a  spiritual  principle  can- 
not be  evolved  by  the  natural  force  of  evolution.  But  how  does  he 
prove  that  ?  On  what  ground  does  he  limit  the  power  of  evolution  ? 
Surely,  in  a  system  in  which  the  whole  living  universe,  vegetable  and 
animal,  is  made  to  issue  forth  from  a  primitive  cell,  who  can,  with 
scientific  consistency,  sny  that  so  far  it  can  go  and  no  further  ?  What 
does  science  know  about  a  spiritual  substance  requiring  an  independ- 
ent and  epecial  creation  ?  On  what  scientific  ground  is  the  power  of 
evolution  limited  ?  From  a  primitive  cell  it  was  powerful  enough  to 
evolve  a  multicellular  system,  and  from  that  to  develop  into  the 
highest  and  most  elaborated  living  plants.  Then,  from  a  living  prin- 
ciple, from  a  simple  internal  movement,  such  as  is  found  in 
plants,  it  was  powerful  enough  to  develop  into  a  sentient  principle,  at 
first  very  imperfect,  and  then  from  the  imperfect  to  the  n^ore  perfect, 
until  it  reaches  the  highest  animal  organization  and  the  exquisite 
sensibility  of  the  best  form  cf  animals,  as  far  as  to  arrive  at  man's 
body.  All  other  evolutionists  go  further  and  say  the  whole  man,  body 
and  soul,  such  as  we  see  him,  has  developed  from  the  natural  law  of 
evolution,  and  these  are  logical  and  consistent.    Saint  George,  after 


175 

agreeing  with  all  theee  evolutionists,  as  far  as  to  man's  body,  sutldenly 
and  arbitrarily  stops  and  tells  us  man's  eoul  cannot  be  the  result  of 
evolution." 

Adele.— 'It  certainly  seems  to  be  illogical." 

George. — "But  Saint  George  stops  at  that  because,  as  I  have  said 
a  while  ago,  it  is  beyond  and  above  the  power  of  nature  to  produce  a 
spiritual  substance.  'Physical  science,' he  says, '  as  guch,  has  nothiug 
at  all  to  do  with  the  soul  of  man,  which  is  hyperphyeical.'     ( Page  303.)-' 

Doctor. — "But  how  does  Saint  George  prove,  scientifically,  that 
man's  soul  is  hyperphysical?  All  evolutionists  have  a  right  to  say, 
8 J  far  as  science  is  concerned  :  all  we  know  is  that  we  observe  man 
to  be  just  as  he  is  ;  you  say  he  is  made  of  body  and  soul ;  that  the  latter 
is  a  spiritual  principle;  that  evolution  could  only  produce  and  bring 
forth  his  body  but  could  not  afiect  his  soul;  that  such  a  soul  must 
have  come  directly  from  the  hands  of  the  Creator;  we  know  nothing 
about  your  distinctions,  hence  can  take  no  cognizance  of  such  distinc- 
tions; you  admit  that  man's  body  is  the  result  of  evolution,  therefore 
you  must,  as  a  scientist,  admit  that  the  whole  man,  just  as  he  ap- 
pears, is  the  product  of  natural  laws." 

Adele. — "Then  the  opinion  of  Saint  George  and  his  adherents  rests 
on  no  logical,  consistent  scientific  basis?  It  admits  man's  body  to 
have  corae  in  the  natural  course  of  evolution,  and  then  without  a 
scientific  reason  in  the  world,  it  stops  at  the  body,  confines  therein 
the  whole  power  of  natural  laws,  and  calls  for  an  intervention  of  the 
Creator  to  account  f6r  man's  soul." 

Doctor. — "Besides,  the  theory  we  are  examining  is  scientifically 
faulty  for  another  reason.  If  man's  body,  according  to  Saint  George, 
has  descended  from  the  ape,  how  is  the  immense  difference  existing 
between  the  body  of  the  former  and  that  of  the  latter  accounted  for? 
We  have  pointed  out  in  one  of  our  conversations  that  man's  body 
differs  from  the  ape's  insuch  manner  as  to  render  all  possible  hypothe- 
sis of  the  one  descending  from  the  other  absolutely  absurd.  But  allow 
the  supposition  ior  a  moment,  to  please  Professor  Mivart,  how  is  the 
immense  difference  between  the  one  and  the  other  accounted  for? 
Mr.  George,  what  has  Mivart  to  answer  to  such  a  question  ?"  • 

George. — "I  am  not  aware  that  he  even  takes  it  under  considera- 
tion." 

Doctor. — "Well,  three  suppositions  can  be  made  to  account  for 
such  difference.  The  first  ia  that  the  differences  in  man's  body  were 
gradually  and  insensibly  developed  in  the  course  of  evolution.  The  sec- 
ond is  that  they  were  caused  by  the  spiritual  substance  which  came  to 
animate  it.  The  third  that  they  were  caused  by  God  Himself  when 
He  evolved  it  from  the  clay.  Now  let  us  examine  each  supposition. 
Can  we  admit  the  first,  George  ?" 


George. — "Certaialy  not.' 

Adele.— 'Why?' 

George. — "Because  if  the  differences  and  peculiar  features  and 
traits  of  man's  body  had  arisen  gradually  and  insensibly  in  the  course 
of  evolution,  it  would  have  taken  a  long,  long  time  to  arrive  at  those 
distinct  decisive  properties,  and  that  only  after  many  and  many  trials 
and  rudimental  imperfect  sketches.  The  consequeince  of  this  is  that 
we  should  find  specimens  and  traces  of  such  intermediate  forms  and 
sketches  of  the  human  frame.  But  where  are  such  vestiges  or  traces? 
Nowhere.  Wherever  man's  remains  have  been  found  they  appear 
identical  with  man's  present  frame,  and  there  is  not  a  single  instance  to 
the  contrary." 

Adele. — "Then  the  first  supposition  must  be  rejected  ?' 

Doctor. — "The  second  is  much  worse.  It  supposes  that  the 
spiritual  substance  which  comes  to  animate  the  apish  oflFspring, 
which  is  to  be  turned  into  man,  itself  produces  all  those  distinctive 
differences  in  order  to  adapt  that  animal  frame  and  body  to  its  own 
use." 

Adele. — "It  seems  rather  plausible." 

Doctor. — "It  is  much  worse  I  say  than  the  first  suppoiiiion.  Be- 
cause it  supposes  a  power  in  the  soul  which  is  contradicted  by  all 
experience  we  have  now.  That  the  spiritual  principle  which  is 
within  us  has  some  mysterious  influence  over  the  body  to  which  it  is 
united,  and  which  it  actualizes  as  its  substantial  form,  is  known  to 
everyone ;  that  such  infl  aence  reaches,  to  a  very  gjeat  extent,  over  the 
whole  body  and  its  functions  so  as  to  affect  it  as  to  its  locomotive, 
vegetative,  acd  sensitive  functions,  is  also  apparent;  but  that  it 
should  have  such  power  and  energy  over  all  the  different  parts  of  the 
bcdily  frame  as  to  change  their  shape  and  form,  upset  their  old 
destination  and  give  them  another  direction  and  aim,  join  them 
anew  in  a  different  way  and  transform,  as  it  were,  the  whole  general 
constitution  of  man's  bodily  frame,  that  is,  a  power  which  none  has 
ever  dreamt  of  attributing  to  the  spiritual  principle  we  call  the  soul. 
And  such  a  power  would  have  been  necessary  in  order  to  make 
good  the  supposition  that  the  differences  between  man's  body  and  the 
ape's  were  caused  by  the  spiritual  principle  which  came  to  animate  it. 
It  should  have  had  the  power  to  change  every  bone  and  every  joint 
and  the  whole  framework  of  the  skeleton,  and  fill  it  up  with  organs 
almost  new  in  every  particular  as  we  have  pointed  out.  Now  such  a 
supposition  is  impossible." 
Adele.— "Why  ?" 

Doctor. — "Because  what  has  been  done  once  by  a  certain  cause, 
the  cause  remaining  the  same,  may  be  done  over  again.  If  the  spir- 
itual principle  had  the  energy  to  ch.ange  the  whole  structure  in  whole 


and  in  i  art  of  an  ape's  body,  to  change  itself  into  a,  man'rf  frame,  why 
cannot  the  same  principle  change,  remodel  man's  frame  now,  or  renew 
it  when  decayed  ?  Besides,  granting  that  supposition  for  a  moment, 
we  have  a  few  questions  to  ask  of  Saint  George.  First,  had  the  spir- 
itual principle  already  tiken  possession  of  the  fortunate  ape's  body  as 
its  substantial  form,  before  it  began  to  work  the  change  spoken  of,  or 
did  It  cause  the  changes  before  actually  taking  possession  of  it  ?  If  the 
tirst,  will  Saint  George  please  to  explain  how  it  is  possible  to  sup- 
pcse  that  a  spiritual  principle  could  take  possession  of  a  body  not 
'suited  to  it  by  nature  or  construction,  as  its  substantial  form  or  acts? 
Or  could  it  start  operations  in  a  body  not  at  all  convenient  to  its  act  ? 
If  the  second,  will  Saint  George  explain  how  the  spiritual  substance, 
acting  outwardly,  and  at  the  distance  from  the  apish  construction 
could  afiect  it  so  as  to  produce  all  the  changes  necessary  to  make  it  a 
fit  abode  for  itself  ?" 

Adele — 'I  am  not  sure  I  follow  you.  You  say,  uncle,  that  if  we 
suppose  the  spirituil  principle  to  have  caused  the  differences  we  ob- 
serve in  man's  body;  when  it  came  to  animate  it,  we  should  account 
for  the  following:  First,  how  is  it  possible  that  a  spiritual  principle 
could  be  united  to  a  body  and  organism  not  adapted  to  its  nature  and 
actions?  And  Low  could  it  be  supposed  to  begin  operations  in  and 
through  organs  unfit  and  incompetent  for  it?  Next,  supposing  it  to 
have  caused  the  changes  before  it  was  actually  united  to  or  took  pos- 
session of  it,  how  are  we  to  account  for  such  an  extraordinary  power 
as  to  cause  all  those  changes  at  a  distance  ?    Is  that  what  you  mean  ? 

Doctor. — "Certainly.  And,  as  these  diflficulties  cannot  be  ex- 
plained away  it  follows  that  the  supposition  is  absurd  and  unten- 
able?" 

George' — "And  that  we  must  fall  back  on  the  special  and  imme- 
diate creation  of  man's  body." 

Doctor.-  "But  we  are  n  ot  as  ye t  through  with  Professor  Saint  George's 
hypothesis.  It  supposes  that  the  bodies  of  the  first  man  and  woman 
each  descended  from  an  apish  couple,  in  the  natural  course  of  sexual 
union,  and  that  God  Almighty  breathed  into  each  one  of  those  bodies 
the  breath  of  life;  that  is,  placed  in  each  a  spiritual  substance,  by  Him- 
self directly  created.  Now  we  may  ask:  Were  those  bodies  the 
ape's  descendants  at  the  moment  God  placed  the  spiritual  principle 
in  them  quick  and  alive,  or  were  they  dead  ?  If  they  were  alive,  they 
must  have  been  animated  by  the  sensitive  principle  or  soul ;  if  they 
were  dead,  they  must  have  been  nothing  but  dead  matter.  In  both 
suppositions,  in  order  to  keep  up  and  maintain  the  course  of  natural 
laws,  and  to  avoid  the  interference  of  the  Creator,  as  scientists  are 
pleased  to  express  it,  we  are  forced  to  increase  such  interference,  to 
multiply  the  instances  of  its  exercise." 


178 

Adele.— "How  ?" 

Doctor.— "Thus :  Say  we  suppose  that  when  God  placed  the 
spiritual  principle  in  the  ape's  descendants,  they  were  already  anima- 
ted by  a  sentient  principle  such  as  vivifies  all  animals,  it  follows  that 
the  Creator  must  first  have  banished,  destroyed,  annihilated  the  sen- 
tient principle  from  those  bodies  to  make  room  for  the  spiritual  prin- 
ciple. Now  this  is  certainly  a  supernatural  interference.  And  it  was 
necessary  ;  for  how  could  we  suppose  God  to  have  put  the  human  soul 
in  the  body  of  an  animal  already  in  possession  of  a  sentient  princi- 
ple? God  then,  by  an  immediate  and  direct  action,  must  have  elimi- 
nated the  sentient  principle  from  those  bodies  and  supplied  ii  with 
the  spiritual  principle.  Mark  three  acts  of  supernatural  interference: 
first,  the  removal  of  the  sentient  principle ;  second,  its  annihilation, 
or  its  maintenance  outside  of  its  own  natural  body  ;  third,  the  inser- 
tion  of  a  spiritual  substance.  Three  acts  of  supernatural  interference 
to  allow  one  efiect  to  result  from  natural  causes." 

Adele.— "I  understand  easily  how,  instead  of  avoiding  the  super- 
natural interference.  Saint  George's  hypothesis  multiplies  it." 

Doctor. — "Take  the  second  supposition,  that  those  two  bodies 
were  dead  before  the  human  soul  came  to  animate  them.  Here  again 
we  have  the  same  objection,  that  of  increasing  the  demand  for  super- 
natural interference." 

George.— "How  ?" 

Doctor. — "Because  to  infuse  a  spiritual  substance  into  the  dead 
body  of  an  ape  is  beyond  the  course  of  natural  laws,  and  is,  therefore,  a 
supernatural  and  miraculous  intervention,  besides  the  other  wonder- 
ful interventions  ppoken  above." 

Adele. — "I  don't  fully  understand  you." 

Doctor. — "Is  it  within  the  province  of  any  natural  agency  or 
cause  to  put  a  spiritual  substance  into  the  dead  body  of  an  animal  ? 
Certainly  not.  It  is  a  much  greater  miracle  than  to  restore  a  dead 
man  to  life.  Now,  in  the  hypothesis  we  are  examining,  to  place  a 
spiritual  substance  into  the  dead  body  of  an  ape  to  make  a  man  of 
both,  would  absolutely  require  such  a  miraculous  intervention.  Hence 
the  miraculous  interventions  are  multiplied,  and  it  would  be  much 
more  simple  to  admit  the  special  and  immediate  creation  of  man  both 
as  to  his  body  and  to  his  soul.  Now,  Adele,  please  to  give  me  a  resume 
of  all  the  reasons  which  make  Saint  George's  hypothesis  unscientific 
and  unphiloaophical  before  we  come  to  the  end  of  our  conversa- 
,  tion." 

Adele.— "If  I  recollect  aright  I  think  the  first  reason  given  why 
Mr.  Mivart's  hypothesis  should  be  considered  unscientific,  is  that, 
whereas  it  admits  evolution  in  general,  in  consequence  of  some 
special  law  which  he  does  not  explain,  it  stops  at  man's  souls  without 


17a 

alleging  any  reison  whatever  for  putting  a  limit  to  the  fecundity  and 
fertility  or  capabilities  of  evolution," 

George.— "Very  good,  indeed!' 

Adele.— "The  second  reason  is,  that  Mivart  cannot,  on  his  hypo- 
thesis, account  for  the  immense  difference  existing  in  the  details  of 
man's  body  and  that  of  the  ape.  And  we  proved  tha';  such  difference 
cannot  be  accounted  for  by  such  a  gradual,  insensible  change  and 
traneformatinii  winch  might  h  ive  occurred  in  ma n'd  ancestors,  to 
slowly  ruiko  way  for  him,  becausa  no  tnxces  have  ever  been  found  of 
such  intermediate  st,  .ges.  We  proved  uloo  that  such  change  could  not 
be  effected  by  the  spiritual  principle  infused  into  it,  neither  before  the 
infusion  nor  atter.  Not  before  the  infusion,  bscause  in  that  case  thj 
spiritual  substance  must  be  supposed  to  have  been  endowed  with  such 
a  power  as  to  cause  those  changes  at  a  distance ;  nor  after,  because  the 
very  infusion  of  the  spiritual  principle  into  a  body  totally  unfit  for  its 
occupation  and  animation,  must  be  first  accounted  for  before  we  sup- 
pose it  to  be  able  to  act  and  to  cause  the  chaages.  In  fact, such  union 
were  impcssible,  as  the  spiritual  principle  could  not  be  joined  except 
to  a  body  adapted  to  its  nature  and  its  action.  Finally,  we  have 
proved  that,  to  suppose  man's  body  to  have  developed  from  an  ape 
and  to  have  afterwards  received  the  spiritual  principle  immediately 
from  God,  demands  moreactsofeupernatural  interference  and  miracu- 
lous intervention  than  the  supposition  of  a  special  immediate  creation 
by  God,  of  both  the  body  and  the  soul  of  man." 

George. — ''Very  well ;  1  am  convinced  now  that  Saint  George's 
hypothesis  is  absolutely  groundless,  not  only  in  theology,  l)u*;  also  in 
science  and  philosophy.  But  I  am  sure  that  the  illustrious  professor's 
intention  was  good  and  excellent,  that  of  demonstrating  that,  even 
supposing  the  evolution  of  species  to  be  proven,  no  possible  conflict 
would  result  between  it  and  revelation  ;  as  the  Christian  Revelation 
does  not  condemn  the  system  of  evolution  and  transformation  of 
specie.",  either  by  natural  selection  or  by  some  other  hidden  law  of 
nature." 

Doctor. — "We  have  proved  that  evolution  cannot  be  held  as 
sound  and  safe  opinion  if  applied  to  man,  either  with  regard  to  his 
body  or  to  his  soul,  and  therefore  the  good  intention  of  Saint  Gforge 
comes  to  nought.  But  I  must  say  I  deplore  this  too  great  anxiety  on 
the  part  of  Christians  and  Catholics  to  yield  to  the  pretensions  of 
ecientists,  in  most  cases  false  and  groundless,  in  too  many  cases  ridi- 
culous and  absurd,  so  far  as  even  to  forget  the  rights  of  Revelation. 
We  gain  nothing  by  such  liberality  for  revealed  truths,  and  by  no 
manner  of  means  satisfy  the  scientist  whose  appetite  is  as  boundless 
as  it  is  unreasonable,  and  I  wish  to  conclude  with  the  immortal 
words  of  Doctor  Brcwnson  on  eractly  the  same  subject  and  about  the 


180 

same  good  intention  praised  by  George  here.  'We  thiuk,'  eays  Brown- 
son,  'the  writers  aim  questionable.  The  theories  ia  question  (evolu- 
tion in  general  and  the  origin  of  man's  body  by  evolution)  may  con- 
tain some  truth,  as  does  every  error  iato  which  the  human  mind  can 
fall,  for  all  error  consists  in  the  misapprehension,  misapplication  or 
perversion  of  truth  ;  but,  as  theories,  both  are  false,  irredeemably  Jcdse, 
and  are  to  be  as  unqualifiedly  condemned  as  auy  erroneous  theories 
ever  broached.  "We  in  our  efforts  to  conciliate  the  professional 
scientists  are  likely  lo  be  euccessful  only  in  weakening  the  cause  of 
truth,  of  obscuring  the  very  truth  we  would  have  them  adopt.  If  we 
are  Catholics  let  us  be  Catholics,  and  be  careful  to  make  no  com- 
promises and  seek  no  alien  alliances.  The  spirit,  as  the  tendency  of 
the  age,  is  at  enmity  with  God,  and  must  be  fought,  not  coaxed.  No 
concord  between  Christ  and  Belial  is  possible.'  ('True  and  False 
Science,'  vol.  9,  page  528.)" 


TWENTY-SEVENTH  ARTICLE. 

IS   MAN    AS   OLD    AS  A  CERTAIN    tCIE>CE    WOULD   MAKE   HIM   OUT    TO   BE? 

Doctor. — "The  question  to  be  taken  up,  next  to  man's  origin,  is 
his  age.  How  long  has  man  existed  upon  the  earth  ?  Is  he  of  com- 
paratively recent  origin,  or  does  he  count  his  years  by  hundreds  of 
thousands?" 

Adele. — "And  what  matters  it  whether  man  has  existed  six  or 
eight  thousand  years,  or  whether  he  has  lived  upon  earth  for  a  hundred 
thousand  ?" 

Doctor.— "Scientists  being  under  the  impression  that  Revelation 
teaches,  and  that  Christians  are  bound  to  maintain  that  man  is  of 
comparatively  recent  origin,  eay  a  few  thousand  years,  do  their  utmost, 
to  prove  the  great  antiquity  of  man  in  order  to  give  the  he  to 
Revelation." 

George. — "And  is  it  not  true,  Doctor,  that  Moses  teaches  man  to 
have  existed  only  abtut  a  few  thousand  years ?" 

Doctor. — "We  will  discuss  that  question  by  and  by.  Let  us  first 
examine,  one  by  one,  the  arguments  by  which  scientists  endeavor  to 
prove  the  great  antiquity  of  man.  George,  can  you  give  these 
arguments?" 

George. — "I  will  do  my  beet.  In  ibe  firct  pluce,  there  is  the  proof 
drawn  from  tools  and  utensils.  In  excavating  iuto  the  stratas  of  the 
earth  there  have  been  found  in  difierent  placed  imiilenients  and  tools 
made  by  man,  such  as  ploughs,  arrows,  and  such  like,  some  of  which 
are  made  of  stone,  some  of  scoria  or  flint,  and  others  from  iron.     Now 


181 

such  tools  are  not  found  mixed  up  all  together  in  every  strata,  but  in 
the  recent  and  superior  strataa  we  meet  with  those  made  of  iron,  in 
the  lower  and  more  ancient  stratas  those  made  of  scoria  or  flint,  and 
farther  down  in  the  very  lowest  ones  those  made  of  stone.  From 
which  fact,  it  is  evident,  that  mankind  must  have  passed  through  three 
successive  epochs,  the  first  ard  the  most  ancient  one,  that  duriug 
which  men  made  use  of  stoucB  lo  fjtliiuu  arms,  tools,  implements,  or 
utensils  for  dumesiic  purpotes,  and  such  epoch  is  called  the  Stone 
A^e.  The  next  is  that  during  which  men  began  to  make  use  of  scoria 
or  copper,  and  that  is  Cdlled  the  Flint  Age.  The  last  and  the  more 
recent,  when  men  learned  the  use  of  iron,  and  which  is  called  the  Iron 
Age." 

Adele. — "Well,  then,  what  has  all  that  to  do  with  the  Age  of  Man? 
What  signifies  that  he  at  one  time  made  use  of  stones  to  make  arms  or 
tools,  and  later  on  used  any  kind  c  f  rude  metal,  that  which  T  suppose 
is  meant  by  flint  or  scoria,  and  that  finally  he  learned  the  great  use  he 
could  make  of  iron  ?" 

George. — "It  signifies  a  great  deal.  In  the  first  place  it  is  clear 
from  those  facts  that  man  must  be  much  older  than  Moses  makes 
him  out  to  be.  Because  each  of  those  epochs  must  necessarily  have 
lasted  along  time,  several  thousands  of  years.  For  if  man  once  was 
in  such  a  barbarous  state  as  to  ignore  the  use  of  metals  for  self-de- 
fence or  for  the  maintenance  of  life,  it  must  have  taken  him  a  long, 
long  time  to  get  out  of  such  state  of  infancy,  so  to  call  it,  and  to 
learn  how  to  make  use  of  those  metals  most  easily  extracted 
from  the  earth,  and  afterwards  to  learn  the  value  and  the  use  of 
harder  metals  and  those  which  require  more  skill  and  more  ability 
to  handle,  until  he  reached  the  more  recent  and  historical  epoch 
where  he  shows  himself  fully  equipped  with  knowledge  of  all  sciences 
and  arts,  not  only  mechanical  but  liberal.  Hence  some  scientists 
of  the  highest  reputaticn  dale  tbe  apparition  of  man  in  the  world 
very  far  back.  Some,  as  Vogt,  Wallace,  Buckner,  say  that  he  has 
been  on  the  earth  over  a  hundred  thousand  3' ears.  Others,  like  Canes- 
trini,  raise  the  number  to  two  hundred  thou.sind." 

Adele. — "I  see  their  aim  ;  from  the  nature  and  roughness  of 
their  tools  they  argue  man's  uncivilized  state  and  infer  the  length  of 
centuries  he  must  have  gone  through  to  become  civilized.  Well, 
what  is  the  next  argument?" 

George. — 'The  next  proof  is  derived  from  the  remains  of  human 
bones  which  have  been  found  in  several  caves  iu  Belgium  and  in 
France.  Such  fossils  have  been  found  together  with  the  bones  of 
animals  belonging  to  species  which  have  long,  long  disappeared." 

Adele  — "And  because  those  human  fossils  have  been  found  with 
those  of  animals  belonging  to  species  long  perished,  I  presume  your 


182 

scientists  infer  that  man's  age  must  be  Ihe  same  as  that  of  the  lost 
animal  species?"' 

George. — "Exactly.  The  next  proof  is  drawn  from  the  ruins  of 
various  human  habitations  appertaining  to  prehistorical  ages.  Such 
are  tombs  made  of  clay  or  rough  stones  for  the  buryiug  cf  the  dead : 
many  of  which  have  been  found  in  Italy,  in  Greece  and  in  the 
northern  parts  of  Europe.  To  the  same  claes  belong  those  rustic 
huts,  called  lacustral,  built  ou  meadows  on  artificial  soil  made  of 
earth  and  stones  and  kept  together  by  poles  and  stakes.  They  are 
found  principally  in  Switzerland  and  Denmark,  and  are  supposed  to 
date  at  least  ten  thousand  years  before  all  historical  times.  Add  to 
these  those  large  masses  of  shells,  which  are  found  on  the  littoral  of 
Denmark,  mixed  up  with  remains  of  fishes  and  implements  of  flint  and 
looking  like  tombs." 

Adele. — "Why,  the  proofs  of  man's  prehistoric  age  seem  to  be  very 
abundant.    Are  there  any  more  ?" 

George. — "Certainly ;  there  are  other  proofs,  founded  on  as- 
tronomy." 

Adele. — "Let  us  have  them." 

George. — 'We  know  from  Diodorus  Siculus  that  the  Chaldeans 
had  made  astronomical  observations  embracing  a  period  of  at  least 
472,000  years.  In  1798,  iu  the  expedition  of  the  French  to  Egypt  un- 
der  Napoleon  the  Great,  some  French  scientists,  ^\?ho  accompanied  it, 
found  two  pictures  of  a,  Zodiac,  one  in  a  temple  at  Dendorah,  the  other 
also  in  a  ttmple  of  Esne.  In  these  the  state  of  the  heavens  was  repre- 
sented as  it  should  have  been  according  to  well  known  rules  of  as- 
tronomy twelve  thousand  years  before  our  time." 

Adele. — "Well,  are  there  any  more  proofs?" 

George. — "To  be  sure,  and  they  are  taken  from  the  annals  and  his- 
tories of  nations,  by  which  it  is  easily  shown  that  maqy  people  are 
much  older  than  Adam  is  represented  to  be.  The  Egyptians,  for  ex- 
ample, according  to  Herodotus,  count  as  many  dynasties  of  kings  as  to 
require  a  great  many  thousands  of  years.  Diodorus  Siculus  testifies 
that  the  Egyptian  priests  from  the  beginning  of  their  rule  down  to 
Alexander  the  Great  had  gone  through  twenty-three  thousand  years. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  the  Chaldeans,  Chinese,  etc." 

Doctor. — "You  have  well  condensed  the  chief  proofs  alleged  by 
scientists  for  the  pretended  antiquity  of  man." 

Adele. — "And  is  man  as  ancient  as  they  pretend  to  make  him  ?" 

Doctor. — "We  shall  see.  In  the  first  place,  I  want  to  remark  that 
we.  Christians,  are  at  perfect  liberty  to  hold  whatever  opinion  is  found 
to  be  well  supported  by  science  as  to  the  antiquity  of  man.  We  are 
not  tied  down  to  any  system  or  tenet  of  faith.  The  chronology  of 
Moses  is  by  no  means  certain.  Because  the  different  versions,  as,  for  in- 


188 

stance,  the  Hebrew,  the  Samaritau,  and  the  Greek  of  the  Septuagint 
do  not  agree  upon  the  point.  The  Samaritan  text  makes  the  Age  of 
Man  shorter  than  the  Hebrew,  this  makes  it  medium;  the  Greek 
makes  it  longer  than  the  other  two.  The  Church,  far  from  deciding 
the  question,  uses  inditlerently  those  different  texts.  In  the  Latin 
version,  called  the  Vulgate,  approved  by  the  Council  of  Trent,  the 
Hebrew  text  h?.s  been  followed,  which  counts  4,000  before  Christ.  In 
the  Eoman  Martyrology,  the  Greek  text  is  followed,  which  raises  it  to 
5  300  years.  Hence  it  is  evident  that  no  Catholic  is  tied  down  to  the 
chronology  of  the  Hebrew  text  and  may  adopt  others  which  bring  the 
Age  of  Man  up  to  SOOO  years  or  more.  To  come  now  to  the 
three  epochs  of  stone,  flint  and  iron,  I  must  say  that  all  which  is  said 
about  them  is  but  uncertain  and  arbitrary.  To  draw  a  conclusion  from 
the  use  of  stone  implements  and  arms  to  prove  the  enormous  an- 
tiquity of  man  a  hundred,  two  hundred  thousand,  scientists  ought  to 
prove  two  things:  First,  that  the  use  of  such  implements  was  gen- 
eral, simultaneous  and  uniform  in  every  part  of  the  world  for  some 
time,  and  then,  that  it  was  succeeded  in  the  same  manner,  that  is,  simul- 
taneously and  uniformly  in  all  places  by  the  use  of  flint,  and  copper, 
and  iron.  Second,  they  should  determine  the  duration  of  each  dis- 
tinctive epoch,  eo  that  we  could  get  an  accurate  idea  of  that  space  of 
lime  called  prehistoric,  from  the  total  reckoning  of  all  those  epochs. 
But  the  friends  of  man's  great  antiquity  neither  attempt,  nor  can  fluc- 
'^eed,  to  demonstrate  either." 

George.— 'It  i-i  clear  that  they  cannot  show  the  use  of  stony  im- 
plements to  have  been  common,  simultaneous  and  uniform  among 
all  peoples  at  the  same  time.  Because,  in  spite  of  their  great  confl 
dence  in  affirmation,  it  is  absolutely  certain  that  the  use  of  stone,  of 
iron  and  of  brocze  prevailed  at  the  same  time  among  different  nation?, 
for  the  reason  that  not  all  nations  alike  had  the  same  beginning,  de- 
velopment and  grade  of  civilization.  So,  that,  whilst  among  one  na- 
tion prevailed  the  use  of  stony  implements,  arms  and  tools,  in  conse- 
quence of  their  ignoring  how  to  extract  and  work  metal ;  among  other 
nations  and  people  better  advanced  in  culture,  we  find  at  the  same 
time  the  use  of  flint,  and  even  iron." 

Doctor.— "For  instance,  whilst  the  Greeks  and  the  Romans  were 
exceedingly  skillful  in  the  working  of  every  kind  of  metal,  at  the 
same  epoch  and  litne  we  find  at  the  extremity  of  Europe,  among  the 
Scythians  beyond  the  Black  Sea  and  in  the  interior  of  Germany  and 
other  regions  the  use  of  stony  implements.  Even  now  among  the  in- 
digenous population  of  Africa,  Australia  and  North  America  are 
found  rude  implements,  arms  made  of  sharpened  stones,  of  bones  of 
animals  and  fishes,  whilst  people  who  have  emigrated  to  those  regions 
from  Europe  are  at  the  height  of  civilization  and  culture.    Who  would 


184 

not  then  laugh  to  ecorn  that  modern  geologist  wiio,  from  the  fact  of 
having  found  buried  in  the  earth  any  of  those  rude  instruments  used 
by  the  indigenous  population  of  the  countries  just  mentioned) 
should  conclude  that  it  must  have  been  worked  thousands  of  cen- 
turies ago  ?" 

George. — "Mr.  Wright,  Secretary  of  the  London  Ethnological  So- 
ciety, asserts  that  the  stone  epoch  cannot  be  really  deitrmined,  be- 
cause not  only  flint,  but  also  iron  implements  are  found  to  have  been 
in  use  at  the  same  time  and  among  the  same  people ;  the  stone  imple- 
ments being  used  by  the  p  jor,  the  others  by  the  rich.  (Lubbock, 
page  63.)" 

Doctor. — "But  suppose  it  was  demonstrated  th.ut  the  use  of  stone 
implements  prevailed  in  some  country  for  a  time  before  that  of 
metals,  what  would  that  prove  ?  They  ought  to  show  how  long  that 
period  lasted  before  flint  or  iron  began  to  be  used.  But  all  that  is  ab- 
solutely uncertain,  and  is  determined  by  some  on  sheer  conjectures 
and  guesses,  with  a  prodigious  quantity  of  fancy  and  imagination. 
This  is  admitted  oven  by  such  men  as  Lubbock.  Votjt,  Buckner,  Lyell, 
Stoppani  and  others." 

George. — "Then,  again,  it  is  a-sumed  for  certain  that  all  the  so- 
called  implements  or  arms  found  ia  the  carta  of  stone,  (.  r  flint  have 
been  made  by  man;  whereas  nothing  is  more  doubtful  than  that;  be- 
cause in  the  very  rude  state  ia  which  they  are  discovered  it  is  more 
than  probable  that  they  may  have  been  formedaccidenl^lly  by  nature. 
As  Professor  Stoppani  says,  ('Course  of  Geology,"  vol.  ch.  31.  Milan, 
73),  epeaking  if  the  excavations  of  the  Janiculus  in  Home:  'What 
wonder  that  among  millions  of  splinteis  of  flint  we  should  find  a  pair 
of  them  very  much  resembling  the  rude  beginning  of  human  art,  for 
instance,  pieces  like  the  points  of  a  spear?'" 

Adele. — "Let  us  hear  something  now  of  the  baman  remains. 
What  have  you  got  to  siy  about  them,  Mr.  George;  do  they  prove 
your  great  antiquity  ?" 

George. — ''Such  as  the  cranium,  for  instance,  of  Engis  on  the 
Meuse,  that  of  Arezeo,  and  the  famous  jaw  and  other  liuman  bones 
found  in  Abbeville.  Well,  to  draw  a  scientific  conclusion  from  thestj 
bones  three  things  ought  to  bo  proved  :  first,  that  these  remains  are 
found  in  layers  belonging  to  epochs  much  more  ancient  than  the 
Quaternary  ;  second,  that  they  have  be-n  found  in  a  virgin  soil  which 
has  never  been  disturbed  by  the  hahd  of  man,  or  by  some  upheaval 
or  cataclysm  of  nature;  third,  that  the  fact  of  its  origination  has 
never  been  altered  or  modified  by  any  falsification  or  systematic  inter- 
pretation." 

Doctor. — "With  regard  to  the  famous  jnw  of  Abbeville  and  other 
human  bones,  they  are  discarded   now  us  f    most  solemn  fraud  and 


imposture, since  the  gelatine  in  those  bones  was  discovered  lo  be  quite 
fresh,  which  proves  that  those  remaiLS  had  beeu  buried  al  an  epoch 
(luite  recent.  But  I  will  say  no  mora  about  human  remalne,  as  I  intend 
that  wc  should  devote  a  whole  conversation  to  the  ditcussion  of  every 
one  of  the  pretended  discoveries  of  human  remains  which  are  sup- 
posed to  prove  man's  great  antiquity  " 

Adele. — "Theu  let  us  turn  to  the  lacustrian  huts,  or  cabins,  or 
cities." 

George. — 'With  regard  to  lacustrian  habitations,  or  constructions 
OU  piles,  so  numerous  on  the  lakes  of  Switzerland,  and  in  which  were 
found  uteneils  in  horn  or  stone,  and  almost  all  the  furniture  of 
ancient  inhabitants,  we  mut^t  remark  that  it  is  quite  impossible  to 
determine  their  age;  and  that  neitherKeller, norDesor, norVaa  Baer, 
nor  Lyell,  nor  any  of  the  antiquarians  have  felt  authorized  to  venture 
any  hypothesis." 

Doctor. — '  On  the  other  hand,  tho  most  ancient  craniums  therein 
discovered  are  perfectly  similiar  to  those  of  the  Swiss  of  the  present 
day ;  the  plants  and  animals  are  the  same  as  are  seen  now  all  over 
Switzerland." 

George. — "Hence  the  most  renowned  geologists  are  of  opinion 
that  they  are  not  as  ancient  as  they  have  been  thought  by  those  who 
are  bent  on  seeing  great  antiquity  where  it  does  not  exist." 

Doctor. — "HochsteLtcr  thinks  it  highly  probable  that  the  lacus- 
trian cities  do  not  reach  beyond  ten  centuries  before  the  Christian 
Era.  And  Fracz  Maurer  places  their  date  between  the  fifth  and 
eighth  century  before  the  Christian  age  ;  whereas  Hastier  places  the 
most  recent  in  the  third  century  before  Christ." 

George. — "And  with  regard  to  the  strata  of  rough  sand  with  which 
it  is  covered,  and  which  Morlot  required  centuries  upon  centuries  for 
its  formation,  Wagner  stakes  his  scientific  reputation  that  it  could  be 
formed  in  as  many  minutes." 

Adele. — "I  am  satisfied,  from  the  disagreement  of  so  many  scien- 
tist* you  gentlemen  have  quoted,  and  who  ditier,  one  from  another, 
that  no  certain  argument  can  be  drawn  from  your  lacustrian  cities. 
But  what  about  the  accumulaiioua  of  vegetable  matter  which  are 
call  turf  pits?" 

George. — "According  to  the  observations  made  in  Eastern  Frisia, 
two  hundred  years  are  sufhoient  lo  form  a  kyer  of  tiirfpit,  thirty  feet 
ia  depth,  whereat,  according  to  the  theory  of  Boucher  de  Perthes,  it 
would  require  three  thousand  years." 

Adele. — "I  begin  to  see  the  usual  disagreement.' 

George. — Burmeister,  en  his  part,  affirms  that  it  has  been  observed 
how  turfpits,  perfectly  exhausted,  have  Deen  refilled  to  thickness  of 
tive  feet  in  the  space  of  thirty  years." 


186 

Doctor. — "With  regard  to  the  objects  which  are  found  buried  in 
turfpits  y,e  cannot  come  to  any  certain  conclusion  as  far  as  the  depth 
at  which  they  lie  is  considered,  because,  on  the  one  hand,  every  one  id 
aware  that  such  objects  fall  deeper  in  proportion  as  the  pit  is  of  recent 
date,  and  therefore  not  as  yet  hardened ;  and.  on  the  other  hand,  if 
we  were  to  adopt  the  calculations  of  some  geologists  with  regard  to  the 
length  of  time  which  is  necessary  to  form  such  pits,  the  obj  acts  formed 
in  them  should  have  been  in  existence  before  the  fijod.  Now,  coins, 
hatchets,  kitchen  utensils  found  in  them  are  all  of  Eoman  origin. 
Hence  the  whole  eystem  of  those  geologists  falls  to  the  ground  like  a 
hou?e  of  cards." 

Adele. — "And  what  about  the  great  historical  antiquity  claimed 
by  so  many  nations  ?"' 

Doctor. — ''Why,  it  is  laughed  at  by  all  real  historians,  who  admit, 
unanimously,  that  a  childish  pride  has  made  those  nations  imagine 
and  invent  their  fabulous  antiquity." 

Adele. — "But,  uncle,  what  about  the  Zodiacs  of  Denderah  and 
Esne  ? ' 

Doctor. — '-The  discovery  of  these  two  Zodiacs  filled  the  infidel 
scientists  who  accompanied  the  expedition  with  delight,  because  they 
pretended  that  those  Zodiacs  proved  the  human  race  to  bo  much  more 
ancient  than  Moses  has  made  it.  As  it  was  an  unhoped- for  opportu- 
nity to  prove  the  sacred  historian  in  error,  the  scientists  raised  a  great 
clamor  about  such  discovery.  But  serious  and  grave  astronomers 
and  arcfcteDlogists  did  not  fail  soon  to  pull  down  such  flimsy  structure, 
and  to  make  the  matter  worse  for  the  scientists.  ChampoUion,  after 
having  ascertained  and  proved  by  the  distinctive  marks  and  character 
of  their  structure  that  the  temples  in  which  these  Zodiacs  were  found 
could  not  ascend  any  higher  than  the  time  of  Tr^^j  m  and  the  Anto- 
nines,  in  1830,  he  succeeded  in  deciphering  the  symbols  and  in- 
scriptions of  such  monuments.  And  what  do  you  think  these  were 
found  to  be  ?"' 

Adele.— "What  ?" 

Doctor. — "But  a  very  poor  specimen  of  sculpture  of  the  Roman 
period.  'The  Zodiac  of  Dende'rab,' says  the  Viscount  de  Eonge,  'has 
become  celebrated  in  consequence  of  the  very  learned  discussions  it 
has  given  rise  to ;  but  it  is  well  known  now  with  certainty  that  it  can- 
not be  more  ancient  than  the  Ptolomees.' " 

Adele. — "As  usual,  the  best  proofs  alleged  by  scientists  to  sustain 
their  point,  the  most  plausible  argument,  nay,  the  most  clinching 
argument,  apparently  in  the  end,  turns  out  to  be  the  feeblest  and  the 
flimeiest.  I  wonder  if  scientists  will  ever  learn  a  lesson  from  so  many 
defeats  to  which  they  have  been  subject,  and  which  are  brought  about 
by  their  unseemly  eagerness  and  anxiety  to  pounce  upon  anything 


187 

which  could,  by  any  possibility,  be  tormented  and  pressed  into  a  lesti- 
niouy  agninst  Christianity.  Let  them  have  a  feather,  a  straw,  an 
intinitesiinal  shadow,  and  they  grow  jubilant;  they  run  wild  with  dc 
light  and  hug  it  with  the  transport  of  a  passionate  lover,  exaggerate  if, 
magnify  its  proportionp,  till,  in  their  sight,  it  grows  and  swells  into  a 
i;iant,  a  mountain,  a|huge  monster,  and  then  they  proclaim,  in  the  mar- 
ket-place, from  the  housetops,  that  it  is  all  over  with  Revelaiion.  By 
and  by,  other  scientists  having  become  sobered  down,  and  not  being 
possessed  by  that  satanic  malevolence  against  Kevelation,  as  the  others 
examine  it  coolly  and  di8pa88ionately,and  find  out,  and  come  to  the  con- 
clusion that  the  whole  thing  was  a  bubble,  and  Revelation  remains  as 
it  ever  was,  unassailable  and  invulnerable." 


TWENTY  EIGHTH  ARTICLE. 

IS  THERE   SUCH   A   THING   AS   THE   FOSSIL   REMAINS   OP    MAN  ? 

Doctor. — "As  we  have  seen  in  our  last  interview,  to  show  the  great 
antiquity  of  man,  scientists  of  the  evolutionist  school  have  endeavored 
to  find  out  the  fossil  remains  of  man  wherever  they  could  before  the 
Quaternary  epoch.  But  to  their  great  chagrin  all  their  efforts  have 
proved  vain  and  useless ;  not  as  much  as  a  vestige  of  man's  bones  has 
ever  been  found  which  could  be  truly  and  really  traced  to  any  older 
period.  In  the  present  interview  we  will  go  over  every  one  of  those 
so-called  proofs  alleged  by  the  evolutionists  with  the  view  of  establish- 
ing that  great  antiquity.  George,  you  are  at  home  here,  and  I  expect 
you  will  give  us,  one  after  the  other,  the  alleged  facts. ' 

George. — "I  am  ready." 

Adele. — "Please  to  express  yourself  in  plain,  lucid,  unprofessional, 
unsophisticated  language." 

George. — "I  shall  be  proud  to  follow  your  directions.  If  I  under- 
stand the  doctor  correctly  he  wishes  to  examine  and  to  put  to  a 
thorough  discussion  all  those  human  skeletons  wnicli  have  been 
found  here  and  there  at  ditierent  times,  and  which  have  been  held  up 
as  testimony  and  evidence  of  the  man  fossil." 

Doctor. — "Exactly." 

George. — "Well,  the  first  one  is  the  cranium  of  Neanderthal.  It 
was  found  by  Dr.  Fuhlrott,  near  Dii-M^eldorf,  in  the  interior  of  a  small 
cave,  under  a  layer  of  clay,  a  yard  and  a  half  in  thickness,  without 
any  protecting  envelope  of  stalagmite.  The  bones  had  in  great  part 
preserved  their  organic  substance ;  there  were  no  traces  of  antedi- 
luvian animal  bones ;  the  cranium  did  not  differ  in  the  least  from  the 
average  type  of  the  Germanic  race,  and  had  no  resemblance  whatever 
to  the  Simian  type.    They  have  pretended  that  its  singular  form  indi- 


188 

cated  an  epoch  very  far  back,  and  that  by  its  inferior  organization  it 
belongs  to  that  race  which  has  ever  been  found  as  most  ancient  in 
Europe." 

Adele. — "Well,  uncle,  is  it  aa  venerably  old  aa  it  is  said  to  be?" 

Doctor. — "No.  Pruner  Bey,  a  very  careful  scientist,  had  already 
aflBrmed  the  identity  of  the  cranium  of  Neanderthal  with  one  of  the 
Celtic  type,  when  Professors  Quatrefages  and  Hamy  found  it  to  be- 
long to  a  type  already  existing,  so  that  Lyell,  convinced  by  the  evi- 
dence, wrote  the  following  remarkable  words:  'With  regard  to  the  re- 
markable cranium  of  Neanderthal,  it  is,  so  far,  a  case  too  much 
isolated,  too  exceptional,  and  too  uncer^^^ain  in  its  origin  to  warrant 
U3  to  base  any  theory  on  its  abnormal  characters.'  ('Antiquity  of 
Man,' page  307.)  And  Huxley  says:  'In  no  sense  can  the  Neander- 
thal bones  be  regarded  as  the  remains  of  a  human  being  inter- 
mediate between  men  and  apes.'  ('Man's  Place  in  Nature,'  page  253.)" 

Adele. — "Cranium  No.  1  thrown  out  of  court. ' 

George. — "Cranium  No.  2  is  that  of  Eoghis.  It  was  found  among 
the  debris  and  remains  of  bones  of  mammoths,  rhinoceros,  hyenas, 
wolves  and  horses.  Pruner  Bey  thought  it  to  be  that  of  a  Celtic 
woman.  Schmerling,  of  that  of  a  negress.  But  Huxley  deemed  it  to 
be  the  cranium  of  a  European  woman,  and  adda  that  by  its  characters, 
both  of  superiority  and  inferiority,  it  must  either  have  belonged  to  a 
philosopher  or  held  the  brain  of  a  savage.  'It  is,  in  fact,  a  fair  average 
human  skull,  which  might  have  belonged  to  a  philosopher,  or  might 
have  contained  the  thoughtless  brains  of  a  savage.'  ('Man's  Place  in 
Nature,'  p.  253.)" 

Adele. —  'It  must  have  been  the  progenitor  skull  of  all  the  future 
scientists,  who  are  a  fair  specimen  of  the  reasoning  powers  of  a  philo- 
sopher or  of  a  savage." 

Doctor. — "You  will  have  much  more  reason  to  say  so  when  you 
hear  the  conclusion  which  Huxley  draws  from  the  total  absence  of 
fact  as  to  the  great  antiquity  of  man.    Go  on,  George." 

George. — "Next  come  the  skulls  from  the  tumuli  at  Borreby,  in 
Denmark.  These  tumuli  or  tombs  are  probably  those  inhabited  by 
man  in  the  Stone  age,  and  the  skulls  found  in  them  resemble,  accord- 
ing to  Huxley,  'the  Neanderthal  form  more  closely  than  any  of  the 
Australian  skulls  do.'    (/6.)" 

Adele. — "Therefore  they  prove  nothing  more  about  man's  great 
antiquity  than  the  Neanderthal  skull.  Exit  No.  3  ekull  as  value- 
less." 

Doctor. — "You  may  place  between  these  last  two  the  skull  of 
Eguisheim,  according  to  Huxley's  opinions." 

Adele.— "Then  exit  skull,  No.  4.    What  is  the  next,  Mr.  George  ?" 

George. — "The  next  are   no  less  than  whole  human  skeletons 


16'.) 

found  in  Stodertlieize  in  Sweden.  But  the  anatomical  charactera 
of  euch  skulls  ditltr  very  little  from  those  of  the  craniums  of  modern 
times  gathered  in  Western  Europe  by  anthropologists.  They  ?re,  then, 
no  proof  of  the  pretended  antiquity  of  man.  The  next  one  is  the 
Californian  skull,  found  in  1SG6,  in  a  well  to  the  depth  of  three  hun- 
dred and  thirty  feet." 

Doctor.— 'Mr.  Whitney  discovered  in  this  skull  the  type  of  the 
fkulls  of  Indians  who  live  at  the  present  on  the  declivities  of  Sierra 
Nevada,  and  stated  that  the  facial  angle  does  not  reveal  any  inferiority 
of  development.  ('Comptes  rendus  du  Congress  de  Bruxelles,'  page 
542.)" 

George.— "Comes  now  the  skeleton  of  Briix,  in  Bohemia.  It  was 
found  in  1873,  in  the  alluvian  sand  to  the  depih  of  four  feet  and  a 
half.  Two  feet  above  the  skeleton  was  found  a  hatchet  worked  in 
stone." 

Adele.— "Well,  what  about  both  the  skeleton  and  the  hatchet?" 

George.— "Professor  Rositanski  declared  the  cranium  to  belong  to 
a  type  inferior  to  that  of  Neanderthal.  But  Professor  Schaaffhausen 
affirms  to  have  discovered  that  the  cranium  and  the  other  parts  of  the 
skeleton  bear  the  traces  of  a  profound  pathological  alteration.  The 
bones  of  the  head,  and  especially  the  parietal  bones,  seemed  to  have 
been  softened  and  corroded  by  festering.    ('  Comptes  rendus,'  etc.,  p. 

54:4:.)" 

Doctor. — "Tell  us  now  something  about  the  man  fossil  of 
Denise." 

George. — "These  bones  were  found  at  a  small  depth  in  a  layer  of 
ashes  certainly  handled  since  historical  times." 

Doctor.— 'You  must  remark,  George,  that  it  has  been  suspected  by 
a  great  many  that  this  group  of  bones  has  been  fabricated  by  a  forger. 
In  any  case  the  tofus,  or  deposit  of  calcareous  matter  which  con- 
tains the  lones,  is  the  product  of  the  last  volcanic  eruption,  which  is 
accounted  in  geology  almost  as  pertaining  to  modern  times.  Then  it 
has  another  character,  which  excluded  very  long  antiquity." 
Adele — "And  what  is  it?" 

Doctor.— "The  skull  belongs  to  the  ordinary  Caucasian  type." 
Adele.— "So  it  has  the  honor  of  belonging  to  our  race,  then !" 
George.— "Next  appears  the  skull   in  the  chambers  of  Cro-Mag- 
non, France." 

Adele.— "Pray,  what  do  you  mean  by  chambers  ?" 
Greorge. — "I  mean  a  kind  of  tunnels  formed  by  incessant  lowering 
of  tender  layers  of  calcareous  rock  due  to  atmospheric  agents.  They 
have  oftentimes  been  utilized  as  habitations  and  rendezvous  of  hun- 
ters. They  are  hid  sometimes  by  slopes  of  crumbling  debris.  Now, 
at  the  bottom  of  a  yellow  layer  containing  some  pieces  of  flint  mixd 


190 

up  with  broken  bones  of  elephants,  bears,  horses,  etc. ;  also  some 
whole  bones  of  foxes  have  been  found,  three  whole  skulls, 
with  a  number  of  bones  and  limbs,  one  of  these  heads,  that 
of  an  old  man,  exhibits  tho  exaggeration  of  those  traits  which 
distinguish  the  tvpe  of  man  from  the  anthropomorphous.  (Haray, 
'Precis,'  p.  276.)  Broca  calls  it  an  exceptional  indiv  dual. 
One  may  well  iij quire  if  chance  has  not  brought  about  that  the  first 
face  of  man  of  the  race  called  troglodytes,  should  be  that  of  an  iudi- 
vidual  presenting  excessive  anatomical  characters.'  (Bulletin  de  la  So- 
ciete  Anthropologique,  Second  Series,  vol.  3,  p.  477.)" 

Adele. — "What  may  you  mean  by  troglodytes,  Mr.  George?" 

Doctor. — "He  means  cave-dwellers,  and  you  must  forgive  him  it 
he  uses  words  in  vogue  among  scientists." 

Adele. — "Do  these  prove  the  great  antiquity  of  man  ?' 

Doctor. — "Nothing  beyond  the  age  which  separates  us  from  the 
Quarternary  epoch.  At  the  sitting  of  the  French  Academy,  March 
oOth,  1874,  the  celebrated  Quatrefages  and  Ilamy  have  presented  tht; 
second  delivery  of  their  work  'Crania  Ethnica'— 'The  Skulls  of  the 
Human  Eaces.'  This  second  delivery  is  entirely  taken  up  w-ith  the 
race,  so  called,  Cro-Magnon.  They  attach  to  the  men— Cro-Magnon, 
those  of  Magdalen,  of  the  Basse  Langerie,  of  Bruaiquel,  Aurignac, 
Menton,  Cantalupn,  Solutr5,  Grenelle,  Goyat,  and  go  on  to  say:  'Tnu 
Cro-Magnon  man  has  travelled  the  ages  which  separate  us  from  the 
Quaternary  epoch  ;  he  is  found  at  different prehistorical epochs;  he  it. 
preserved  in  transitory  state  till  our  present  time,  and  is  even  now 
represented  by  a  certain  number  of  isolated  individuals.  He  has  been 
found  in  Chauny  in  a  Gallic  cemetery  of  the  Iron  epoch  in  Paris  ir 
the  excavations  of  the  HotelDieu.  But  it  is  principally  in.  Africa 
where  we  must  look  for  the  representatives  of  this  race  in  the  tombs  of 
B-oknar  among  the  Kabiles  of  Beni  Menasser  and  Djurjura.'  It  is  evi- 
dent from  such  testimony  that  the  race  Cro-Magnon  belongs  to  the 
epoch  between  us  and  the  Quaternary,  and  hence  eliminates  all  idea 
i)f  great  antiquity." 

Adele. — "Well,  we  have  disposed  of  the  skulls  of  Cro-Magnon,  who 
or  what  comec«next  ?" 

George. — "The. skeleton  of  Laugerie  Basse.  It  was  discovered  in 
1873  by  Carthailhac  Massenat  and  Lalande,  in  a  thick  layer  containing 
various  objects  in  a  bed  of  burned  earth  and  coal.  They  wanted  to 
prove  that  it  represented  the  skeleton  of  man  of  great  antiquity  who 
had  been  buried  by  an  accidental  caving  iu  of  the  ground." 

Doctor. — "Other  scientists  have  proved  from  all  tho  circumstances 
in  which  the  skeleton  was  found,  that  it  '.vas  buried  there  by  men  or 
friends  at  no  very  remote  period.  Professor  F.  Hement,  in  a  letter 
written  to  the  Academy  of  Sciences,  did  not  hesitate  to  say:  'The 


191 

bkeleton  found  by  Massenat  was  certaiuly  buried  there  and  not  hid  by 
a  c.iving  in  of  the  ground.'" 

Adele.— "I  am  afraid  you  are  digging  up  a  whole  cemetery,  Mr. 
George.     Are  there  any  other  foesil  remains  of  man  ?"' 

George.— 'I  am  sorry  to  say  that  there  are.  To  pass  over  a  few 
leas  important,  there  is  the  Pliocene  man  of  Savona  who  next  demands 
our  attention." 

Adele.— "You  mean  a  fossil  man  supposed  to  belong  to  the  Plio- 
cene epoch  ?" 

George. — "Exactly." 

Adele. — "Tell  us  about  it,  then." 

George. — "Some  years  ago,  in  a  trench  dug  out  on  the  ridge  of  a 
promontory  called  Calle  del  Vento,  working  men  discovered  at  the 
depth  of  about  nine  feet,  first  a  skull,  then  the  diflerent  parts  of  a 
whole  skeleton.  The  ground  seemed  really  to  belong  to  the  Pliocene 
period,  because  one- half  of  the  shells  found  in  it  belonged  to  a  species 
already  extinct.  It  was  soon  inferred  that  the  remains  of  the  man 
mu3t  have  been  as  old  as  the  deposit  which  contained  it.  Broca  pre- 
tended to  eee  in  it  anatomical  characters  of  great  value." 

Doctor. — 'But  facts  gathered  a  little  later  have  deprived  this  skeleton 
of  all  the  importance  given  to  it.  Because  it  has  teen  shown  that 
nothing  in  the  physical  state  of  the  bones  marks  any  difierence  be 
I  ween  them  and  those  of  any  ligurian  of  the  historical  times.  Pro- 
fessor Hamy  did  not  hesitate  to  write  in  his  'Precis  de  Paleontologie 
Humaine,'  p.  67  :  "The  pretended  man  fossil  of  the  Pliocene  period 
of  Savona  seems  to  have  been  buried  in  a  deposit  at  a  date  much  more 
recent  than  that  of  its  formation,  to  which  some  naturalists  have  at- 
tached so  much  importance." 

Adele. — "Then  the  conclusion  about  this  man  fossil  of  Savona  is 
that  the  deposit  in  which  it  was  found  was  really  of  the  Pliocene 
epoch,  but  it  is  not  demonstrated  that  the  man  was  buried  there  at 
the  same  epoch  of  the  formation  of  the  deposit,  and  therefore  this 
skeleton  of  Savona  proves  nothing  as  to  the  great  age  of  man." 

Doctor. — 'Precisely." 

George. —  'The  next  in  order  are  the  skeletons  of  the  cave  so-called, 
of  the  Dead  Man." 

Adele. — "Do  tell  us  about  them,  it  is  so  charming  to  handle  such 
pleasant  subjects!" 

George. — "This  cave  is  situated  near  Lozere,  in  France.  It  was 
visited  and  explored  by  Professor  Broca.  It  is  principally  a  burying 
grotto,  wherein  have  been  discovered  bodkins  made  of  bones,  points 
of  epear,  remnants  of  feasts,  ashes,  relics  of  coal,  seven  fire-places, 
with  knives  and  scrapers  of  flint.  At  the  one  side  of  the  cave,  there 
is  a  kind  of  dwelling,  capable  of  sheltering  a  whole  tribe.    In   that 


192 

dwelling  were  found  the  skulls  of  seven  men,  six  women  and  three 
children,  remarkable,  as  Broca  says,  by  the  expression  of  gentleness 
in  their  traits,  and  the  purity  of  their  outlines." 

Doctor. — "Well,  by  acknowledgment  of  the  Professor  himself,  it  is 
conceded  now  that  such  remains  do  not  claim  a  time  much  farther 
back  than  that  o'  the  Phoenicians ;  whom  every  one  knows  to  be  his- 
torical people,  and  therefore  proves  nothing  as  to  the  great  antiquity 
of  man." 

A.(Jele. — "Shall  we  never  leave  caves,  and  sepulchres,  and  damp, 
gloomy  tombs,  and  get  in  the  open  air  ?" 

Doctor. — "Have  patience  yet  a  while  till  we  dispose  of  all  the  dis- 
coveries in  that  line.    Go  on,  George." 

George.— "The  next  one  is  the  man-fossil  of  the  grottoes  of  Men- 
ton.  These  are  situated  alongside  the  seashore,  in  the  province  of  Porto 
Maurizio,  in  the  commune  of  Ventimiglia,  Italy,  at  a  little  distance 
from  the  French  frontier.  They  are  natural  cracks  of  the  mountain 
known  by  the  name  of  the  Mountain  of  the  Red  Rocks.  Rivieie,  after 
having  found  a  great  number  of  utensils  in  flint  and  bones,  sea  and 
land  shells,  and  remains  of  animals,  discovered  in  the  cave  called 
Carillon,  a  human  skeleton  lying  on  the  left  side  in  the  longitudinal 
bed  of  the  grotto.  The  head,  somewhat  more  elevated  than  the  rest 
of  the  body,  was  lightly  bent,  and  it  rested  on  the  soil  by  the  lateral 
part  of  the  skull  and  of  the  face." 

Adele.— "And  what  is  to  be  concluded  from  such  discovery  ?" 

Doctor.— "M.  Riviere  himself  has  declared  that  the  man  of  Men- 
ton  could  not  by  any  manner  of  means  be  called  the  fossil  man,  and 
that  it  presented  no  traits,  whatever,  of  anything  that  might  approach 
the  ape ;  and  in  the  last  meeting  of  the  delegates  of  the  scientific  so- 
cieties, April,  1874,  he  protested  honestly  and  strongly  against  those 
who  had  qualified  his  discovery  as  that  of  fossil  man." 

George.— "And  here  end  all  the  discoveries  so  far  made." 

Adeie. — "Many  thanks,  indeed,  for  the  news." 

Doctor. — "But  before  winding  up  this  subject  I  want  to  call  your 
attention  to  something  much  more  interesting  and  amusing.  The 
great  professor,  Huxley,  after  having  examined  all  the  remains,  dis- 
covered and  appreciated  them  at  their  proper  value  with  a  simplicity 
which  has  no  parallel,  with  a  naiveness  truly  enchanting,  with  an 
absolute  trust  in  the  enormous  gullibility  of  his  readers,  concludes  that 
some  way  or  other  the  primeval  man,  wanted  by  evolution,  must  be 
found  somewhere  (otherwise  what  would  become  of  evolution  ?),  that 
time  will  show  him  if  one  has  only  faith  and  patience." 

Adele. — "That  is  charming,  indeed." 

Doctor. — "George,  please  to  read  the  words  marked." 

George. — "  'In  conclusion,'  says  Huxley,  'I  may  say  that  the  fossil 


193 

remains  of  man  hitherto  discovered  do  not  seem  to  me  to  take  us 
appreciably  nearer  to  that  lower  pithecoid  form  by  the  modification 
of  which  he  has  probably  become  what  he  is.  " 

Doctor.— "Pithecoid,  that  is,  some  kind  of  being  between  the  ape 
and  man." 

George.— "Where,  then,  must  we  look  for  primeval  man  ?  Was 
the  oldest  Homo  sapiens  pliocene,  or  miocene,  or  yet  more  ancient  ? 
In  still  older  strata  do  the  fossilized  bones  of  an  ape,  more  anthro- 
phoid,  or  a  man  more  pithecoid  than  any  yet  known,  await  the 
researches  of  some  unborn  paleontologist  ?    Time  will  show." 

Doctor.— "Which  is  as  much  as  to  say  there  is  not  the  slightest 
fact  to  show  the  existence  of  a  man-ape,  nor  of  its  great  antiquity. 
Some  future  paleontologist  may  find  and  discover  such  facts.  In  the 
meantime,  what  is  the  conclusion  that  Huxley  draws  from  his  honest 
admission  ?  Does  he  grant  that  the  absence  of  such  facts  must  shake 
from  the  foundation  the  whole  system  of  evolution  ?  Quite  the  con- 
trary.   Bead  on,  George." 

George. — "'But,  in  the  meanwhile,  if  any  form  of  the  doctrine  of 
progressive  development  is  correct,  we  must  extend  by  long  epochs.'  " 

Adele. — "In  spite  of  facts  to  the  contrary.  Excuse  me  for  the  in- 
terruption." 

George. — "'We  must  extend  by  long  epochs  the  most  liberal  esti- 
mate that  has  yet  been  made  of  the  antiquity  of  man.'  ('Man's  Place 
in  Nature,'  253  aad  254- )" 

Doctor. — "Admire  the  colossal  logical  structure  of  your  modern 
science.  It  proves  evolution  by  the  supposed  facts,  and  the  supposed 
facts  by  evolution.  But  the  ex:iuisiteness  of  the  joke  on  the  part  of 
scientists  ia  their  appearing  to  be  serious,  and  in  being  fully  confident 
that  not  one  of  theii  readers  can  see  as  far  as  his  own  nose  to  discover 
the  absurdity  and  the  inconsistency  of  their  reasoning.  They  know 
they  can  draw  on  the  heedless  superstition  and  credulity  of  modern 
infidel  reader  to  an  unlimited  extent." 

Adele. — "I  see  now  that  Mr.  Huxley  must  have  been  describing 
his  own  skull  and  brain  when  qualifying  the  skull  of  Enghis  as  some- 
thing uncertain  and  doubtful,  a  skull  that  might  have  belonged  to  a 
philosopher  as  well  as  to  a  savage ;  in  the  opinion  of  Huxley,  I  pre- 
sume, there  being  not  much  difference  between  the  skull  of  a  philouo- 
pher  and  that  of  a  savage." 


TWENTY-NINTH  ARTICLE. 

IS  CIVILIZED   MAN   THE   NATURAL    PRODUCT  OP   THE   SAVAGE  ? 

Doctor. — "Next  to  the  great  antiquity  of  man  must  be  placed  the 
question  of  his  primitive  condition.    Was  the  early  condition  of  man 


19i 

the  aavage  state  or  was  it  not?  Evolutionists  can  have  but  one  answer 
to  the  problem,  and  that  is  that  man  appeared  at  first  in  the  most 
abject  and  savage  condition  as  it  is  possible  to  imagine ;  because  as  he 
is,  according  to  evolution,  the  lineal  descendant  of  the  ape,  it  fol- 
lows that  he  cannot  have  inherited  any  but  the  animal  condition  of 
his  ancestors  and  repectable  sires,  that  i?,  just  the  animal  state  and 
the  very  minimum  of  intelligence,  possibly  a  grain  more  or  less 
higher  than  that  possessed  by  his  simian  parents." 

George.— "Of  course,  that  is  the  evident  consequence  of  evolu- 
tion." 

Adele.— "And  as  we  have  proved  the  system  of  evolution  to  be 
false,  the  consequence  must  share  the  fate  of  the  premises." 

Doctor. — "Certainly,but,  for  our  own  satisfaction,  T  intend  to  discuss 
the  subject  thoroughly  and  prove  two  distinct  statements  which  I  make. 
The  first  is  that  true  science  emphatically  repudiates  and  rejects  all 
such  supposition  of  man's  primitive  state  to  have  been  savage,  by 
proving  that  as  a  fact  man  from  his  first  appearance  shows  himself  to 
be  furnished  and  equipped  with  all  the  elements  of  civilization.  The 
second  statement  is  that  if  man  had  appeared  in  his  early  stage  in  the 
condition  of  a  savage,  he  could  never  by  himself  and  natural  develop- 
ment have  become  civilized.  And  now  for  the  proof.  George,  do 
you  know  of  any  decisive  proof  which  puts  beyond  all  dispute  the 
fact  that  man's  primeval  state  was  not  the  savage  but  the  civi- 
lized ?" 

George. — "I  do.    Language." 

Adele. — "How  does  language  prove  that  man's  primeval  condition 
is  the  civilized  and  not  the  savage  ?" 

Doctor. — "Certainly ;  when  we  have  considered  the  full  import 
and  the  deep  significance  of  language,  you  will  see  the  truth  of  that 
statement.  George,  what  truths  are  to  day  put  beyond  dispute  by  real, 
competent  judges  with  regard  to  language  ?" 

George.— "The  first  is  that  man  could  not  invent  the  language  for 
the  reasons  we  gave  in  another  conversatioB,  and  for  many  more 
which  could  be  added.  This  is  admitted  by  Darwin  himself  when  he 
says  that  'no  philologist  now  supposes  that  any  language  h^s  been 
deliberately  invented.'  ('Descent  of  Man,'  p.  47,  Humb.  ed)  He  con- 
tends, however,  that  it  has  been  slowly  and  unconsciously  developed 
by  many  steps,  and  proposes  the  bow  wow  theory  and  the  imitations 
of  the  sounds  of  nature,  or  the  pooh-pooh  theory." 

Adele. — "What  is  the  bow-wow  theory  ?" 

George.— "That  which  holds  that  language  has  been  invented  by 
imitating  the  cries  of  animals." 

Adele.— "And  what  is  the  other  ?" 

George. — "The  other  is  the  theory  which  maintains  language  to 


]95 

have  originated  in  the  imitation  of  the  sounds  of  nature,  as  bnz'-. 
rattle,  etc.  Now,  Max  Miiller  has  refuted  both  theories  with  the  skill 
and  the  authority  of  a  master." 

Adele. — "I  would  like  to  hear  hia  reasons  refuting  both." 
George. — "Well,  I  will  give  you  some  idea  of  them.  And  first,  aa 
to  the  bow  wow  theory:  'It  is  supposed,  then,'  says  Miiller,  'that  man 
being  as  yet  mute,  heard  the  voices  of  birds  and  doge  and  cows,  the 
thunder  of  the  clouds,  the  roaring  of  the  sea,  the  rustling  of  the  fores', 
the  murmurs  of  the  brook  and  the  whisper  of  the  breeze.  He  tried  to 
imitate  these  sounds,  and  finding  his  mimicking  cries  useful  as  signs 
of  the  object  from  which  they  proceeded,  he  followed  up  the  idea  and 
elaborated  the  language.'  ('Science  of  Language,'  vol.  I.,  p.  359.)" 
Adele. — "And  what  is  to  be  said  to  that  ?" 

George. — "Professor  Miiller  answers  that  'though  there  are  names 
in  every  language  formed  by  mere  imitation  of  sound,  yet  these  con- 
stitute a  very  small  proportion  of  our  dictionary.  They  are  the  play- 
things, not  the  tools  of  language,  and  any  attempt  to  reduce  the  most 
common  and  necessary  words  to  imitative  roots  ends  in  complete 
failure.  Herder  himself,  after  having  most  strenously  defended  this 
theory,  and  having  gained  a  prize,  which  the  Berlin  Academy  had 
offered  for  the  best  essay  on  the  origin  of  language,  renounced  it 
openly  towards  the  latter  years  of  his  life,  and  threw  himself  in  de- 
spair into  the  arms  of  those  who  looked  upon  languages  as  miracu- 
lously revealed.  We  cannot  deny  the  pofslbility  that  a  language 
might  have  been  formed  on  the  principle  of  imitation.  All  we  say  is, 
that  as  yet  no  language  has  been  discovered  that  was  so  formed.'  And 
after  having  demonstrated  that  many  words,  seemingly  invented  on 
the  imitation  theory,  have  a  different  root,  he  concludes :  'The  num- 
ber of  names  which  are  really  formed  by  an  imitation  of  sound 
dwindle  down  to  a  very  small  quotum,  if  cross  examined  by  the  com- 
parative philologist,  and  we  are  left  in  the  end  with  the  conviction, 
that  though  a  language  might  have  been  made  out  of  the  roaring, 
fizzing,  hissing,  gobbling,  twittering,  cracking,  banging,  slamming 
and  rattling  sounds  of  nature,  the  tongues,  with  which  we  are 
acquainted,  point  to  a  different  origin.'  And  so  we  find  many  phil- 
osophers, and  among  them  Condillac,  protesting  against  a  theory 
which  would  place  man  even  below  the  animal.  Why  should  man 
be  supposed,  they  say,  to  have  taken  a  lesson  from  birds  and  beasts  ? 
Does  he  not  utter  cries  and  sobs  and  shouts  himself,  according  as  he  is 
afliected  by  fear,  pain  or  joy  ?  These  cries  or  interjections  were  repre- 
sented as  natural  and  real  beginnings  of  the  human  language." 
Adele. — "I  supose  this  leads  us  into  the  other  theory." 
George. — "Which  Max  Miiller  calls  the  pooh-pooh  theory,  which 
supposes  that  human  language  was  elaborated  after  the  model   of 


196 

man's  natural  cries  and  expression.  It  is  also  called  Interjectional 
theory." 

Adele. — "And  what  must  one  think  of  it  ?" 

George. — "  'Our  answer,'  says  Miiller  'to  this  theory  is  the  same  as 
to  the  former.  There  are,  no  doubt,  in  every  language  interjections, 
and  some  of  them  become  traditional  and  enter  into  the  composition 
of  words.  But  these  interjections  are  only  the  outskirts  of  real  lan- 
guage. Language  begins  where  interjections  end.  There  is  as  much 
difference  between  a  real  word,  such  as  'to  laugh,'  and  the  interjection, 
'ha,  ha!'  between 'I  suffer' and 'oh!'  as  there  is  between  the  involun- 
tary act  and  noise  of  sneezing  and  the  verb  'to  sneeze.'  An  excellent 
answer  to  the  interjectional  theory  has  been  given  by  Home  Tooke : 
'The  dominion  of  speech,'  he  says,  'is  erected  upon  the  downfall  of  in- 
terjections. Without  the  artful  contrivances  of  language  mankind 
would  have  had  nothing  but  interjections  with  which  to  communi- 
cate orally  any  of.  their  feelings.  The  neighing  of  a  horse,  the  lowing 
of  a  cow,  the  barking  of  a  dog,  the  purring  of  a  cat,  sneezing,  cough- 
ing, groaning,  shrieking,  and  every  other  involuntary  convulsion  with 
oral  sound  have  almost  as  good  a  title  to  be  called  parts  of  speech  as 
interjections  have.  Voluntary  interjections  are  only  employed  where 
the  suddenness  and  vehemence  of  some  afiection  or  passion  returns 
men  to  their  natural  state  and  makes  them  for  a  m.oment  forget  the 
use  of  speech,  or  when  from  some  circumstance  the  shortness  of  time 
will  not  permit  them  to  exercise  it." 

Doctor. — "The  conclusion  of  all  this  is,  therefore,  that  man  neither 
deliberately,  nor  insensibly,  and  step  by  step,  can  have  invented  the 
language,  and  that  the  language  must  have  been  taught  by  the 
Creator.  But,  George,  can  we  maintain  that  the  Creator  gave  man  the 
faculty  of  speech  and  taught  him  the  language  with  which  to  exercise 
that  faculty  without  giving  him  the  ideas  to  understand  the  meaning 
of  what  he  should  utter  in  speech  ?" 

George. — "Certainly  not.  To  have  a  language,  and  to  be  able  to  use 
it,  one  must  have  knowledge,  and  the  sense  of  the  word  must  precede, 
or  at  least  be  simultaneous  with  the  word.  How,  then,  could  the  Crea- 
tor give  man  the  faculty  of  language  without  revealing  to  him,  in 
some  way,  the  ideas  and  principles  it  is  fitted  to  express,  and  without 
expressing  which  it  cannot  be  language  ?" 

Adele. — "But,  gentlemen,  I  cannot  see  what  all  this  has  got  to  do 
with  one  attempting  to  prove  that  man's  primeval  state  was  not  the 
savage  ?" 

Doctor. — "Don't  you  see,  Adele,  that  if  the  primitive  man  was 
taught  language  by  the  Creator,  and  if  together  with  language,  ideas 
and  principles  were  taught  him  which  language  is  calculated  to  ex- 
press, it  follows  that  man  began  as  civilized,  and  not  as  a  savage  ?" 


197 

Adele. — "I  see,  now  ;  the  first  man  «poke,be  understood  what  he 
uttered,  therefore  he  began  with  knowledge  adequate  to  the  language, 
and  hence  the  first  momenta  of  his  existence  are  not  those  of  sav- 
age but  of  civilized  being.  But,  uncle,  they  may  urge  the  objection 
that  even  savages  have  a  language,  and  that  does  not  prevent  them 
from  being  savages ;  why,  then,  is  language  in  the  primeval  man  a 
sign  of  knowledge  and  culture,  and  not  in  the  savage?" 

Doctor. —  'Savages  have  a  language,  to  be  sure,  and  yet  they  re- 
main savages  because  that  very  language  gives  indisputable  proof  and 
evidence  that  they  have  degenerated  from  a  primitive,  perfect  state; 
because  their  language  shows  a  degree  of  intelligence  and  culture 
which  is  in  full  contradiction  with  their  present  state.  Take  for  in- 
stance those  savage  American  tribes  who  speak  the  Maya  apd  the 
Betoy,  and  you  will  find  that  they  make  use  of  two  forms  of  verbs, 
one  which  indicates  the  time,  and  the  other  simply  points  out  the  re- 
lation existing  between  the  attribute  and  the  subject,  NoWjWho  can  have 
taught  those  rude  men  such  a  fine  logical  distinction  ?  It  is  evident 
that  their  language  points  out  to  a  primitive  state  of  culture  and  re- 
finement from  which  they  have  degenerated.  We  have,  therefore,  a 
perfect  right  to  assume  that,  owing  to  the  f  xct  of  man  being  provided 
with  language  and  using  it  for  all  purposes  for  which  it  is  intended, 
he  appeared  at  first  in  a  civilized  and  not  in  a  barbarous  or  savage 
state." 

George. — "To  this  must  be  added  the  fact  that  all  philologists 
admit,  without  a  dissenting  voice,  that  all  languages  are  derived  from 
one  primitive,  perfect  language." 

Doctor. — "Certainly,  they  all  agree  as  to  that,  though  they  cannot 
tell  what  language  was  the  primitive  one.  Perhaps  that  language  is 
lost,  perhaps  it  was  altered  at  the  time  of  the  confusion  of  tongues,  in 
consequence  of  the  attempt  to  build  the  Tower  of  Babel.  What  is 
absolutely  certain  is  that  all  known  languages  prove,  to  demonstration, 
that  they  have  all  originated  from  one  single  language." 

Adele. — "And  is  that  another  proof  of  the  fact  that  man's  primeval 
state  was  that  of  culture  and  iiot  savageism  ?" 

Doctor — "Of  course,  a  man  speaking  a'perfect  language  and  under- 
standing its  terms  is  a  cultured  and  not  a  savage  being,  a  being  en- 
dowed with  all  the  knowledge  necessary  to  his  welfare  and  well  being. 
Now,  George,  before  we  pass  to  the  other  statement  which  I  have  made, 
do  you  know  of  any  other  argument  to  prove  the  fact  of  man's 
primeval  cultured  state  ?" 

George. — "The  other  argument  is  that  man  appears  since  the 
cradle  of  history  as  a  social  being.  There  is  no  instance  in  history 
showing  that  man  has  ever  appeared  in  any  other  state  but  the  social. 
Now,  society  means  communication  and  interchange  of  ideas,  feelings, 


mutual  help,  and  services,  both  morally  and  physically,  and  therefore 
implies  a  certain  amount  of  culture  and  civilization." 

Adele. — "Well,  I  am  perfectly  satisfied  that  man's  primitive  state 
was  not  the  savage,  but  the  cultivated  and  civilized.  The  fact  of  man 
being  furnished  with  a  language  and  being  in  a  social  state  fully  and 
amply  proving  it.  Now,  I  am  anxious  to  know  the  proof  of  the  other 
statement,  that  if  man's  primitive  state  had  been  the  savage,  he  could 
never  by  himself  have  freed  himself  from  it  and  passed  to  the  state  of 
civilization." 

Doctor. — "Why,  the  proof  is  twofold :  first;  reason,  and  second^ 
facts.  The  reason  is  very  simple — 'You  cinnot  give  yourself  what  you 
haven't  got,'  is  the  saying  of  the  schoolmen,  and  applies  perfectly  to 
our  subject.  What  is  meant  by  a  savage?  Mark  well,  I  don't  mean 
savage  as  we  find  him  now,  with  a  language,  a  certain  amount  of  social 
state,  even  a  certain  organized  government,  and  so  forth.  I  mean  the 
savage  as  implied  by  the  bypothesis ;  that  is,  a  human  being,  perfectly 
destitute  of  all  knowledge  of  language,  in  the  lowest  passible  state  of 
ignorance  just  next  to  the  animal.  Such  a  being  must  gradually  pass 
from  the  state  of  absolute  ignorance  to  that  of  partial  knowledge,  of 
absolute  brutish  manners,  customs  and  habits  to  those  of  partial  cultiva- 
tion, of  absolute  helplessness  to  that  of  finding  means  for  food,  shelter, 
and  finally,  of  comfort  and  elegance.  How  can  he  do  so  ?  What  means 
has  he  got?  Nothing  but  his  absolute  ignorance  and  entire  helpless- 
ness. Then  the  theory  we  are  refuting,  as  Dr.  Brownson  puts  it,  'as- 
serts efiects  without  causes,  that  nothing  can  make  itself  something 
or,  what  is  the  same  thing,  that  the  stream  can  rise  higher  than  its 
fountain,  the  efiect  surpass  the  cause,  the  man  in  and  of  himself  can 
make  himself  more  than  he  is.  All  growth  is  by  accretion  and  as- 
similation from  without.  The  germ  of  the  oak  containing  the  law  of 
its  development,  is  in  the  acorn  but  without  air,  light,  heat  and  mois- 
ture derived  from  without,  the  acorn  will  not  germinate  and  grow  into 
the  oak.  The  law  is  universal.  The  human  body  grows  and  attains 
its  maturity  only  under  proper  external  conditions,  and  by  assimilat- 
ing its  appropriate  food.  The  soul  can  grow  or  advance  only  by  as- 
similating spiritual  instruction  and  oral  truth,  or  elevate  itself  to  a 
higher  conditi@n  without  assimilating  a  grace  from  a  course  above 
itself.  So,  if  man  had  begun  in  the  savage  state,  he  could  never  by 
his  own  indigenous  and  unassisted  efforts  have  risen  above  it.'  ('The 
Primeval  Man  Not  a  Savage,'  vol.  9,  p.  468.)" 

George. — "The  fact  proves  your  reason.  Doctor.  In  no  instance 
has  a  savage  nation  or  people  become  civilized  by  their  own  unaided, 
unassisted  efiorts ;  and,  again,  if  man  had,  or  could  have  risen  from 
the  savage  sLate,  the  experiment  could  be  tried,  and  the  possibility  of 
such  a  tbing  ascertained.    But  in  every  case  it  has  been  found  that  a 


man  left  to  himself,  to  his  own  pure  unassisted  nature,  can  never  come 
out  of  such  a  state.  Take  two  children,  a  male  aad  female,  separate 
them  from  all  social  surroundinss,  and  place  them  in  an  absolute 
isolation,  leave  them  to  the  free,  untrammeled,  uncontrolled  develop- 
ment of  nature  and  what  is  the  result  ?  They  will  be  as  ignorant  as 
the  lowest  brutes,  and  infinitely  more  helpless  than  the  lowest  animals. 
Take  the  instance  of  the  yoimg  savage  of  Aveyron." 

Adele.— "What  is  that,  Mr.  George?" 

George. — "Three  gentlemen  were  hunting  in  a  wood  at  Aveyron, 
France,  when  they  saw  a  young  man  about  twelve  years  of  age,  per- 
fectly naked,  gathering  roots  and  glands  through  the  forest.  When 
he  perceived  the  hunters,  he  ran  away  and  climbed  upon  a  tree  to 
avoid  their  pursuit.  The  hunters  finally  succeeded  in  capturing  him 
and  brought  him  to  Kodez,  in  the  Hospice  in  St.  Affrique,  and  then 
to  the  Institute  of  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  in  Paris.  Doctor  Pinel,  one  of 
the  most  celebrated  alienist  doctors  of  France,  describes  him  in  very 
interesting  words:  '  His  senses,' he  says, ' are  reduced  to  such  inertia 
as  to  be  in  that  respect  much  inferior  to  those  of  some  of  our  domes- 
tic animals.  The  eyes,  without  any  fixedness,  without  expression, 
wander  vaguely  from  one  object  to  the  other  without  ever  resting  on 
any ;  and  they  were  so  poorly  developed  and  exercised  as  not  to  be 
able  to  distinguish  objects  in  relief  from  those  only  painted.  The 
organ  of  the  hearing  was  equally  insensible  to  the  most  powerful 
sounds  as  well  as  to  the  sweetest  music.  That  of  the  speech  was  re- 
duced to  the  state  of  perfect  dumbness,  and  did  not  let  out  but  a  uni- 
form guttural  sound.  The  organ  of  smell  was  so  poorly  cultivated  as 
to  render  it  quite  indifferent  for  him  to  breathe  the  most  exquisite 
perfumes  as  well  as  the  most  fetid  exhalations.  Finally,  the  touch 
was  confined  to  the  merest  mechanical  function  of  grasping  and  clutch- 
ing bodies.  He  was  incapable  of  attention,  of  judging  and  of  imitat- 
ing—so confined  was  he,  and  restricted  in  ideas,  even  those  relative  to 
his  natural  wants  that,  after  several  months,  he  had  not  succeeded  in 
learning  how  to  open  a  door,  or  to  climb  upon  a  chair  to  reach  the 
food  raised  to  the  level  of  his  hands.  Deprived  of  all  means  of  com- 
munication, he  attached  no  expression  or  intention  to  the  movements 
of  his  body,  passed  with  rapidity  and  without  reason  from  a  most  apa- 
thetic sad  uess  to  roars  of  laughter,  the  most  immoderate.  Insensi- 
ble to  every  kind  of  moral  aSections,  his  discernment  did  not  go  be- 
yond a  calculation  of  gluttony,  all  his  pleasuies,  beyond  some  agree- 
able sensation  of  the  taste,  all  his  intelligence  confined  within  the 
range  of  a  very  few  ideas  relative  to  his  wants;  in  a  word,  his  whole  ex- 
istence was  purely  animal.' " 

Doctor. — "Now,  in  my  opinion  and  conviction,  this  portrait  of  the 
young  savHge   of   Aveyron  is  and  will  always  be  to  the  end  of  the 


200 

chapter,  the  portrait  of  primeval  man,  such  as  he  would  have  been  if 
created  and  placed  in  the  world  in  the  state  of  pure  nature  without 
any  other  aid  of  language,  instruction,  or  society." 

George. — "Pinel  declared  the  young  savage  an  idiot.  Itard,  the 
celebrated  doctor  and  director  of  the  Institute  of  Deaf  and  Dumb,  be- 
lieved, on  the  contrary,  in  the  integrity  of  the  intellectual  faculties  of 
the  same,  but  only  in  the  state  of  complete  apathy  and  inaction,  and 
undertook  to  revive  them.  After  the  most  extraordinary  and  persever- 
ing eflforts  he  succeeded  but  very  imperfectly,  owing  to  the  long  in- 
action of  the  intellectual  and  affective  faculties  of  the  young  savage, 
and  of  the  frightful  numbness  of  the  organs  of  speech  and  of  hear- 
ing." 

Doctor. — "We  may  conclude,  then,  in  the  words  of  the  same  great 
and  humane  scientist,  Itard,  in  the  page  95  of  his  report:  'Man  in  the 
state  of  pure  nature  is  inferior  to  a  great  number  of  animals.  He 
terrifies,  by  his  nullity  and  his  barbarism,  the  moral  superiority 
which  is  supposed  to  be  natural  to  man,  is  not  assured  to  him  except 
by  means  of  society  and  civilization.' " 

George — "And  he  adds  these  solemn  words :  'I  have  no  doubt  that 
if  two  children  of  both  sexes  were  isolated  since  their  early  infancy, 
and  the  same  were  done  with  two  quadrupeds  of  a  species  the  less  in- 
telligent, these  last  would  turn  out  to  be  much  superior  to  the  first, 
with  regard  to  the  means  of  providing  for  their  wants  and  of  watch- 
ing, either  on  their  preservation  or  that  of  their  young  ones.'  " 

Adele. — "We  may  conclude,  then,  that  if  man  had  appeared  in 
the  state  of  barbarism  and  total  ignorance  of  language  and  instruction, 
he  would  have  remained  in  the  same  state  forever,  and  would  very 
soon  have  become  extinct." 

Doctor. — "Certainly.  Science,  then,  and  philosophy  bring  in 
their  verdict  in  favor  of  the  teaching  of  the  Christian  Revelation,  that 
the  first  man  was  created  by  God  perfect  in  body  and  soul,  and  that 
his  mind  was  filled  with  instruction  and  knowledge  necessary,  not  only 
for  liis  welfare  and  that  of  his  family,  but  necessary  in  order  that  he 
might  be  the  head  of  the  race,  not  only  physically,  but  morally  and 
socially." 

George. — "How  do  we,  then,  account  for  the  evident  signs  of  ig- 
norance and  barbarism  in  the  Stone  age  ?" 

Doctor. — "We  have  proved  at  what  value  those  ages  ought  to  be 
estimated.  At  the  same  time,  whatever  of  ignorance  and  barbarism  is 
recorded  in  history,  it  is  easily  explained  by  the  dogma  of  t  lie  fall  ot 
man,  the  consequence  of  which  was  a  darkening  of  his  mind  and  a 
weakening  of  his  will,  and  the  loss  of  harmony  in  man's  pDwers  and 
faculties,  and  the  prevalence  which  his  passions  obtained  ov(>r  his  will 
and  his  mind.   Still,  men  did  not  lose  all  necessary  and  useful  knowl- 


201 

edge,  especially  those  who  remained  in  Asia,  the  cradle  of  mankind. 
The  ignorance  and  barbarism  which  are  inferred  from  the  few  general 
facts,  which  science  can  really  prove,  are  easily  accounted  for  by  a 
l>ortion  of  mankind,  after  the  confusion  of  tongues,  having  emigrated 
to  the  cold  regions  of  Europe,  thus  being  cut  oflf  from  all  traditions 
and  the  society  of  others,  and  who  gradually  lost  all  knowledge  of 
things  and  gave  rise  to  the  men  of  the  caves  and  of  the  Stone  age." 

Adele. — "I  can  easily  understand  how,after  the  dispersion  of  those 
who  built  the  Tower  of  Babel,  some  of  them  gradually  and  insensibly 
fell  lower  and  lower  into  ignorance,  until  some  of  their  descendants 
present  the  phenomenon  of  the  men  of  those  ages,  called  barbarous. 
And  what  to  my  mind  proves  this  most  triumphantly  is  that  all 
records  of  barbaristn  and  ignorance  are  found  only  in  Europe,  and 
none  whatever  in  Asia,  where  the  true  religion  flourished,  at  leapt 
among  one  nation,  and  the  others  more  or  less  retained  some  truths  of 
the  old  religion." 

Doctor. — "Bravo,  Adele ;  and  with  your  happy  remark  we  will 
close  this  part  of  the  subject." 


THIRTIETH  ARTICLE. 

man's   place    in    the    universe — ARE  OTHER   WORLDS   THAN   OURS   IN- 
HABITED? 

Doctor. — "The  next  question  which  we  should  treat  is  the  unity 
of  the  human  species.  But  as  we  have  said  enough  in  our  conversa- 
tion to  prove  such  a  truth,  I  think  it  will  be  better  for  us  to  pass  to 
other  subjects." 

George. — "I  was  going  to  make  the  same  remark.  We  have  seen 
— speaking  of  evolution — the  truth  of  that  great  principle  that  if  two 
individuals — no  matter  to  what  race  they  may  belong — be  capable  of 
sexual  union,  and  if  such  union  be  fruitful  and  fertile,  it  is  an  evident 
sign  that  they  belong  to  the  same  species.  Now  all  the  known  races 
of  mankind  can  unite  together,  and  their  union  is  not  only  fertile, 
but  the  offspring  emanating  from  them  are  in  their  turn  indefinitely 
fruitful ;  therefore,  all  the  human  races  belong  to  a  single  species. 
Besides  the  unity  of  the  primitive  language,  which  is  evidenced  by 
the  fact  that  all  known  languages  to  day  have  been  demonstrated  to 
have  originated  in  a  single  primitive  one,  emphasizes  the  same  truth 
as  the  unity  of  the  human  species." 

Adele. — "Well,  then,  we  will  pass  to  the  question  next  in  order." 

George. — "Which,  I  think,  is  the  place  which  man  holds  in  the 
universe." 

Doctor. — "Exactly.  But  under  these  questions  others  are  involved 


?02 

,.hich  we  must  discu'8,  and  foremost  among  them  is  the  question 
whether  other  worlds  besides  our  earth  are  filled  with  life,  and  espe- 
cially with  intelligent  substances  united  to  some  kind  of  a  body." 

Adele. — "I  don't  understand  anything  at  all." 

Doctor. — "What  is  it  you  don't  understand  ?" 

Adele. — "First,  I  see  no  connection  between  the  question  of  man's 
place  in  the  universe  and  that  which  inquires  if  other  worlds  than 
our  earth  contain  life  and  intelligent  beings." 

Doctor. — "Don't  you  see,  Adele,  that  we  could  not  determine  or 
define  man's  place  in  the  universe  unless  we  could  ascertain  whether 
other  intelligent  substances,  inferior  or  superior  to  man,  whatever 
they  may  be,  are  living  in  other  worlds?  How  could  we  locate  him, 
po  to  speak,  unless  we  knew  whether  he  is  the  only  intelligent  sub- 
stance created,  or  whether  there  are  others?" 

Adele. — "But  what  did  you  mean  when  you  snid  whether  there 
are  other  intelligent  substances  united  to  some  kind  of  a  body?  Did 
you  mean  whether  there  be  other  men  in  the  worlds  above  us?" 

Doctor. — "I  meant  two  things  in  putting  the  question :  whether 
there  be  in  other  planets  or  stars  intelligent  substances  incorporated 
into  some  kind  of  a  body;  first,  I  did  not  mean  to  speak  of  angels, 
because  we  know  by  Revelation  that  they'  are  pure  spiritual  sub- 
stances, -neither  united  actually,  nor  intended  to  be  united  to  a  body; 
but  I  meant  spiritual  substances,  more  or  less  like  mac,  united  to  a  body; 
second,  when  I  said  united  to  some  kind  of  a  body  I  meant  to  imply 
that  such  a  body  need  not  necessarily  be  the  same  as  man's  body;  but 
such  aa  could  be  adapted  to  the  peculiar  conditions  of  each 
heavenly  body  in  which  it  might  happen  to  reside." 

Adele. — "I  think  I  perceive  now.  We  inquire  if  there  be  other 
intelligent  beings  in  the  heavenly  bodies,  in  order  to  be  able  to  assign 
man  his  own  place.  And  when  we  seek  if  there  be  other  intelligent 
indwellers  in  those  worlds,  we  do  not  mean  angels,  but  intellectual 
substances  united  to  a  body,  so  formed  and  constructed  as  to  be 
adapted  to  the  peculiar  conditions  and  circumstances  of  each  h,eavenly 
body  in  which  they  might  chance  to  dwell." 

George. — "Very  clearly  summed  up,  indeed." 

Doctor. — "Tell  us,  George,  what  do  your  scientists  accuse  Chris- 
tianity of  in  respect  to  the  question  we  are  discussing  ?" 

George. — "They  accuse  Revelation  of  two  great  errors,  the  geo- 
centric error  and  the  anthropocentric  error." 

Adele. — "Dear  me,  that  is  dreadful !  and  what  may  they  mean  by 
the  geocentric  and  the  anthropocentric  errors  ?" 

George. — "I  will  give  the  words  of  Buckner :  'The  first  consists  in 
considering  the  earth  as  the  centre,  the  capital  point  of  the  world; 
in  admitting  that  the  whole  universe  has  been  made  solely  and  ex- 


clusively  for  this  infinitesimally  email  point  of  space.  The  second  is 
that  which  considers  man  as  the  centre  and  the  end  of  the  inorganic 
and  organic  world,  of  which  he  is  at  the  same  time  the  master  and  the 
king.'  The  firet  of  these  two  errors,  adds  Buckncr,  has  been  removed 
and  rooted  out  by  Copernicus,  Kepler,  Galileo  and  Newton.  The  second 
has  been  done  away  with  by  Lamarck,  Goethe,  Lyell  and  Darwin." 

Doctor.— "And  these  great  men  would  deserve  our  heartfelt  thanks 
and  our  eternal  gratitude  if  the  things  were  true,  if  the  errors  were 
really  held  by  Revelation  as  taught  by  Christianity.  But  such  errors 
are  only  in  the  brain  of  scientists." 

Adele. — "What!  does  not  Christianity  teach  that  the  earth  is  the 
centre  of  the  universe,  and  that  man  is  the  centre  and  the  end  of  all 
inferior  creatures  and  the  king  and  master  of  creation  ?" 

Doctor. — "Revelation  never  taught  any  such  thing  that  the  earth 
is  the  centre  of  the  universe,  or  that  it  was  immovable  in  space,  and 
that  the  sun  and  the  stars  moved  around  it.  Such  opinion  was  held 
by  the  scientists  of  those  day  a,  and  the  Fathers  and  Doctors  of  the 
Church  followed  it,  as  the  Doctors  of  the  present  time  follow  the  most 
commonly  received  opinions  of  the  scientific  world,  neither  more  nor 
less.  With  regard  to  man,  if  by  considering  him  as  the  centre  and 
aim  of  all  other  mundane  creatures,  we  intend  to  signify  that  he  is 
the  centre  of  the  universe  and  the  king  and  master  of  all  life  which 
may  be  contained  therein.  Revelation  never  taught,  nor  obliges  any 
one  to  hold,  such  a  thing.  If  by  that  assertion  we  mean  to  convey 
the  truth  that  man  is  the  centre  of  all  life,  vegetable  or  animal,  on 
this  earth,  and  that  he  is  the  king  of  all  creatures  inferior  to  him, 
none  can  object  to  such  a  statement  as  being  a  consequence  deduced 
from  the  essential  relation  of  things,  and  consequently  a  metaphysi- 
cal truth.  But  we  shall  understand  all  these  things  clearly  and  dis- 
tinctly when  we  have  discussed  the  following  questions  :  first,  can  we, 
as  Catholics,  maintain  that  besides  man,  the  greatest  creation  of  God 
visible  on  earth,  there  may  be  in  the  other  planets,  in  our  sun,  in  the 
millions  and  tens  of  thousand  millions  of  stars,  other  intelligent 
substances  united  to  a  body  adapted  to  the  conditions  of  those  worlds, 
intellectual  substances  like,  or  even  superior  to,  man  ?  second  ques- 
tion, can  such  opinion  be  demonstrated  by  any  scientific  or  philo- 
sophical arguments,  and  what  can  be  the  value  of  the  same?  third 
question,  how  is  such  opinion  of  the  plurality  of  worlds  reconciled 
with  the  dogmas  of  Christianity  ?" 

Adele. — "I  am  very  anxious  to  enter  into  such  an  interesting  and 
attractive  discussion." 

Doctor. — "We  will  quote  four  authorities  in  confirmation  of  the 
statement,  that  it  is  free  to  every  Catholic  to  maintain  the  plurality  of 
worlds,  in  the  senoe  we  have  explained;  that  is,  the  existence  in  other 


204 

worlds,  not  only  of  organic  and  animal  life  but  also  of  intellectual 
substances,  united  to  some  kind  of  a  body  adapted  to  the  conditions 
of  those  worlds.  George,  please  to  read  from  the  Conferences'  of 
Father  Felix,  the  words  I  have  marked." 

George. — "'You  wish  absolutely  to  discover  in  the  moon,  yoii 
want  to  find  in  the  stars  and  in  the  suns,  brethren  in  intelligence  and 
liberty,  and,  as  certain  geniuses  who  pretend  to  have  the  intuitive 
vision  of  all  the  worlds,  you  desire  to  salute  across  space  societies  and 
astronomical  civilizations.  So  be  it.  If  you  have  no  other  reasons  to 
dissent  from  us  there  is  nothing  which  will  prevent  us  to  hold  out 
to  you  the  hand  of  fellowship,  nor  you  to  grasp  ours.  Put  in  the 
sidereal  worlds  as  many  populations  as  you  please,  under  such  form 
and  at  such  degree  of  temperature,  material  and  moral,  as  you  list  to 
imagine,  the  Catholic  dogma  possesses  a  tolerance  which  will  astonish 
you.  .  .  .  Is  it  absolutely  desired  that  the  planets,  the  suns,  the 
stars,  be  filled  with  inhabitants,  capable,  like  us,  to  know,  to  love,  to 
gloiify  the  Creator  ?  I  am  loath  to  proclaim  it  again,  the  dogma  has 
no  repugnance  to  it ;  it  does  neither  deny  nor  affirm  anything  on  that 
hypothesis.'  ('Conference  de  Notre  Dame  de  Paris,  1863— Le  Mystere 
de  la  Creation  et  la  Science  des  Mondes,')" 

Adele. — "That  is  a  clear  testimony."- 

Doctor. — "And  receives  value  from  the  fact  that  it  was  preached 
before  an  immense  audience  not  only  of  lay  persons,  but  of  eccle- 
siastics of  every  rank  and  dignity.  George,  read  the  second  testimony, 
that  of  Father  Gratry." 

Adele. — "Who  is  Father  Gratry,  uncle  ?" 

Doctor.— "A  very  remarkable  writer  of  philosophy,  well  known 
all  through  the  modern  Catholic  world,  and  especially  France.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  French  Oratorians.  In  his  'Letters  on  Religion,' 
explaining  the  words  of  Our  Lord :  'And  other  sheep  I  have  which 
are  not  of  this  fold ;  them  also  I  must  bring,  and  there  shall  be  one 
fold  and  one  shepherd'  he  says  the  words  which  George  is  going  to 
read." 

George. — "  'I  cannot  think  of  the  inhabitants  of  other  worlds 
without  at  once  feeling  my  reason  and  my  faith  become  enlivened 
and  invigorated.  I  see  those  wonderful  brethren,  and  in  such  multi- 
tude are  very  likely  to  be  found,  some  much  greater,  much  more 
beautiful,  and  much  more  advanced  than  men,  much  more  capable  of 
an  indomitable  and  creative  faith.  How  many  noble  and  splendid 
beauties  are  to  be  found  already  upon  our  earth,  thanks  be  to  God, 
visible  angels  sent  by  God  to  speak  to  our  souls  and  to  open  our 
hearts.  What,  then,  must  those  beauties  be,  so  much  more  noble  and 
so  much  more  sublime !'    ('Lettres  sur  la  Religion,'  Paris,  18G9,)" 

Adele,— •*!  admire  very  much  the  enthusiasm  of  Father  Gratry." 


£03 

Doctor. — "Let  us  now  take  the  testimony  of  one  of  the  greatest 
astronomers  of  our  day,  Father  Secchi.  He  has  no  doubt  whatever 
about  the  plurality  of  worlds,  and  it  is  not  necessary  for  us  to  remark 
that  if  such  opinions  were  at  variance  with  any  tenet  of  the  Catholic 
faith,  Father  Secchi,  who  was  as  great  a  Catholic  as  he  was  a  scientist, 
would  not  have  held  it  for  a  moment.    Kead  the  words,  George." 

George. — '"Life  fills  the  universe,  and  with  life  is  associated  intel- 
ligence, and  as  creatures  inferior  to  us  abound,  so  there  may  exist  in 
diflerent  external  conditions  creatures  much  more  capable  than  men. 
Between  the  feeble  light  which  shines  in  our  frail  compound,  by 
meana  of  which  we  can  know  so  many  wonderful  things,  and  the 
Wisdom  of  the  Creator  of  all  things,  there  lies  an  infinite  distance, 
which  may  be  filled  by  an  infinite  number  of  grades  of  creatures  for 
which  the  theorems,  which  in  us  are  the  fruit  of  hard  studies,  may  be 
only  simple  intuitions.'    ('Le  Stelle,'  Milano,  1S77,  p.  339.)" 

Doctor. — "The  other  testimony  which  is  much  more  important  is 
that  of  Abb6  Moigno.  Before  you  ask,  Adele,  I  will  tell  you  who  is 
the  Abbd  Moigno.  He  is  a  French  ecclesiastic,  a  scientist  of  very  great 
value.  He  was  the  founder  of  a  magazine  called  the  Cosmos,  and  has 
published  several  scientific  and  theological  works,  among  which  the 
work  called  'The  Splendors  of  Faith.'  In  this  last  work  he  affirms 
that  he  was  authorized  by  the  Congregation  of  the  Koman  Index,  that 
is,  that  Congregation  of  Cardinals  and  theologians  who  examine  books 
to  find  out  whether  there  be  any  doctrine  in  them  opposed  to  faith  or 
morals,  to  apprise  M.  Flammarion  that  the  plurality  of  worlds  was  not 
opposed  to  any  Catholic  doctrine." 

Adele. — "Who  is  Flammarion  ?" 

Doctor. — "A  French  astronomer  who,  among  other  works,  has 
wriiten  a  book  on  the  'Plurality  of  Worlds.'  In  this  book  he  asserted 
that  such  an  opinion  could  not  be  reconciled  with  the  Catholic  doc- 
trine of  the  Creation  and  Redemption.  The  Abbe  Moigno  wrote  to 
the  Commission  of  the  Index  about  the  matter,  and  was  by  them 
authorized  to  tell  the  author  of  the  book  that  he  was  mistaken  in  his 
assertion  that  the  plurality  of  worlds  did  in  no  way  conflict  with  the 
doctrines  of  the  Creation,  Incarnation  and  Redemption  as  taught  by 
the  Catholic  Church." 

George. — "I  presume  the  Commission  of  the  Roman  Index  ought 
to  know  what  is  and  what  is  not  opposed  to  Catholic  doctrine,  and  we 
may,  therefore,  rest  assured  that  the  opinion  can  safely  be  held  by  aay 
one  who  has  reasons  sufficient  to  incline  him  towards  it." 

Doctor. — "It  follows  also  that  no  Catholic  doctrine  obliges  any 
one  to  hold  or  maintain  that  the  earth  is  the  centre  of  the  universe 
in  any  sense  opposed  to  science;  and  that  the  boast  of  Buckner, 
that  Copernicue,  Galileo,  etc.,  had  done  away  with  that  error  is  futile. 


206 

If  there  was  an  error  it  was  a  scientific  one  of  which  Catholic  doc 
trine  is  not  responsible.  Nor,  again,  are  we  bound  by  any  doctrine  lo 
maintain  that  man  is  the  end  and  aim  of  the  universe  and  the  king 
of  the  same.  Because,  as  we  can  maintain  that  there  may  be  nobler, 
greater,  loftier  created  intelligences  united  to  a  body,  it  is  evident 
that  man  cannot  be  the  end  of  these  and  the  king  over  them.  One 
remark  I  want  both  of  you  to  keep  steadily  in  view,  and  it  is  this, 
that,  go  far  as  real  facts  are  concerned,  man  is  the  only  incorporated 
intelligence  in  the  universe.  There  may  be  other  intelligences,  as 
we  have  said,  greater  or  nobler,  but  we  are  not,  and  cannot  h:;,  certain 
of  it.  The  plurality  of  the  worlds  of  intelligences  is  an  hypothesis,  a 
conjecture,  a  wish,  a  desideratum,  but  nothing  more.  Science  can  go 
no  further  than  that.  No  incorporated  intelligence  other  than  man 
has  been  observed  in  the  planets,  stars,  suns,  or  otherwise.  Conse- 
quently, so  far  as  real  science,  which  means  certain  knowledge,  is  con- 
cerned, we  know  only  of  that  incorporated,  spiritual,  intelligent,  sub- 
stance called  man,  and  no  more." 

Adele. — "That  is  plain  enough,  and  I  cannot  see,  uncle,  why  you 
insist  so  much  on  it." 

Doctor. — "I  insist  so  much  on  it  on  account  of  the  consequence 
which  flows  from  the  same." 

George. — "And  that  is  ?" 

Doctor. — "That,  so  far  as  real  science  is  concerned,  the  earth  as 
being  the  indwelling  place  of  the  only  really  ascertained,  incorporated 
intelligence,  is  infinitely  superior  to  all  other  worlds  wherein  intelli- 
gences are  supposed,  but  are  not  ascertained,  to  exist." 

George. — "I  see." 

Doctor. — "To  wind  up  our  present  conversation,  I  want  you  to 
read  a  passage  from  the  greatest  astoaomer  of  our  times  which  fully 
develops  my  last  remark.  It  is  that  of  Francis  Arago,  the  brightest 
scientific  glory  of  France." 

George. — "'Since  by  the  measurements  in  which  the  evidence  of 
the  method  keeps  equal  steps  with  the  precision  of  the  results,  the 
volume  of  the  earth  has  been  reduced  to  less  than  a  millionth  part  of 
the  volume  of  the  sun,  the  fact  that  the  sun  itself,  carried  as  it  were 
into  the  starry  regions,  must  occupy  a  very  modest  place  amid  the 
milliards  of  stars  which  the  telescope  has  signaled ;  the  fact  that  the 
over  ninety-one  millions  of  miles  which  separate  the  earth  from  the 
sun  have  become,  in  consequence  of  their  comparative  littleness,  a  base 
absolutely  unfit  to  theresearchesofthedimenijionsof  the  visible  world; 
since  the  velocity  of  the  luminous  rays,  two  hundred  thousand 
miles  a  second,  hardly  suffices  to  the  valuations  of  science;  since, 
finally,  by  a  chain  of  proofs  perfectly  irresistible,  it  has  been  aacer- 
laiued  that  certain  stars  are  so  far  from  us  that  thair  light  could  not 


i.'U7 

reach  us  in  less  than  a  million  of  years,  we  remain,  aa  it  were,  crushed 
before  such  immensity.  lu  giving  man  and  the  planet  in  which  he 
lives  such  a  small  place  in  the  material  world,  astronomy  seems  to 
have  made  such  progress  only  in  order  to  humble  us.  But  in  looking 
at  the  question  from  another  point  of  view,  if  one  reflects  on  ihe  ex- 
treme weakness  of  the  natural  means  by  the  help  of  which  such  great 
problems  have  been  approached  and  resolved,  if  one  consider  that  to 
catch  and  to  measure  the  greatest  part  of  those  quantities  forming  to- 
day the  basis  of  astronomical  calculations,  man  has  been  obliged  to 
perfect  very  much  the  most  fine  and  delicate  organ  and  to  add  im- 
mensely to  the  power  of  his  eye ;  if  one  will  observe  that  it  has  been 
equally  necessary  to  invent  proper  methods  to  measure  long  intervals 
of  time,  to  struggle  against  the  most  microscopic  efiects  which  the 
continual  variations  of  temperature  produce  in  metals,  and,  for  that 
matter,  on  all  instmments;  to  guard  himgelf  against  the  illusions 
without  number  which  is  caused  on  the  route  of  the  luminous  rays 
by  the  atmosphere — now  cold,  now  warm,  then  dry  or  damp,  now 
tranquil  and  then  agitated — across  which  all  observation  must  inevit- 
ably be  made,  then  the  weak  being  reacquires  all  his  advantages. 
Alongside  of  such  wonderful  works  of  the  mind  what  signify  the 
weakness  and  fragility  of  our  body?  What  matters  it  that  the  di- 
mensions of  the  planets  in  which  it  has  fallen  to  our  lotto  appear, 
but  for  a  few  instants,  are  as  a  grain  of  sand?'  ('Notices  Historiquee,' 
vol.  2,  p.  27S.)" 

Doctor. — "And  mark,  both  you,  that  Arago  only  notices  the  works 
of  human  genius  in  one  depititment  of  science — that  of  aetronomy. 
How  much  more  could  be  said  if  we  caat  a  glance  at  the  whole  ency- 
clopedia of  natural  sciences  ?  How  much  more  could  wc  add  if  from 
natural  sciences  we  arise  to  metaphysical  sciences,  and  from  these  tothe 
miracles  of  human  genius  in  all  and  every  one  of  the  fine  arts  iu 
which,  especially,  man  truly  deserves  the  appellation  of  creator? 
Supposing,  then,  that  the  worlds  above  us  were  lifeless  and  unin- 
habited, their  extraordinary  and  prodigious  material  dimensions  were 
as  no  thing  compared  with  the  almost  infinite  capabilities  of  the 
human  mind,  the  human  will,  and  therefore  the  earth,  the  abode  of 
the  latter,  would  be  vastly  superior  in  worth  and  dignity  to  the  count- 
less euns  and  stars  which  dot  the  firmament." 


THIRTY- FIRST  ARTICLE. 

Sr-rENTIFIC     AND     PHILOPOPHICAL     REASONS     FOR     THE     ILURALITY     OF 
WORLDS. 

Doctor. — 'George,  what  is  the  value  of  the  scientific  argument  in 
favor  of  the  plurality  of  worlds?    Are  there  any  real  facts  which  have 


208 

been  observed  by  as! ronomera  indicating  that  there  i^  in  the  worlds 
beyond  and  above  us  life  in  all  its  variety  and  stages,  from  the  purely 
■  organic  and  vegetable  to  the  highest  intellectual  substances  incorpora- 
ted in  a  body  ?" 

George. — "I  regret  to  say  there  are  no  facts  proving  such  a  conclu- 
sion. No  actual  observation  has  ever  been  made  demonstrating  the 
existence  of  life  in  any  of  the  worlds  above  us." 

Adele. — "What,  then,  is  this  scientific  argument  in  favor  of  our 
opinion?  What  is  its  value?  I  wish  we  had  a  perfect  demonstration 
of  such  a  thing ;  for  I  am  charmed  with  the  idea  of  peopling  those 
great  and  enormous  regions  with  life  and  energy  in  every  shape." 

George. — "Scientists  and  astronomers  can  go  as  far  as  this ;  that 
they  can,  by  actual  observation,  prove  the  habitability,  so  to  speak, 
of  other  worlds  besides  our  planet,  and  the  fact  that  our  earth  is  in  no 
way  distinguished  from  others  in  that  respect ;  from  that  they  not 
only  answer  the  objection  raised  against  our  hypothesis  with  regard 
to  the  conditions  necessary  for  life,  but  prove,  furthermore,  the  possi- 
bility of  the  existence  of  life  in  those  regions." 

Doctor. — "Yes,  sir,  astronomy  can  go  no  further  than  the  limits 
just  mentioned.  Yet  it  is  a  giant  step  toward  the  demonstration  of 
the  hypothesis.  If  ever  the  discovery  of  better  instruments,  magnify- 
ing to  an  unlimited  extent  the  power  of  our  present  telescopes  shall 
be  made,  or  some  other  means  shall  be  found,  in  the  course  of  cen- 
turies, of  approachitig  nearer  and  nearer  other  planets  or  other  suns, 
mankind  may  yet  be  able  to  actually  observe  life,  and,  mayhap,  enter 
into  communication  with  the  inhabitants  of  those  worlds." 

George. — "The  last  hypothesis  of  mankind  ever  being  able  to  be 
placed  in  communication  with  the  inhabitants  of  other  worlds  seems 
rather  an  extravagant  thought,  doctor,  if  you  will  allow  me  to  say  so, 
and  might  expose  one  who  should  dream  of  such  a  thing  to  laughter 
and  ridicule." 

Doctor. — "No  danger  of  such  thing,  George,  in  the  judgment  of 
true  serious  thinkers.  Why,  the  universe — the  work  of  infmite  power, 
wisdom  and  goodness,  the  expression  of  the  infinite  perfections  of  the 
same  abyss  of  excellence  and  being — is  as  yet  almost  a  sealed  book  to  us. 
We  know  but  little  of  all  which  it  can  reveal  of  the  tre.asures  which  have 
been  lavished  on  it  with  such  bountiful  hands.  We  may  compare  it 
to  a  panorama  of  the  most  magnificent  and  glorious  beauties,  covered 
by  an  immense  and  thick  curtain.  Only  an  infinitesimal  corner  of  that 
curtain  is  lifted  to  enable  us  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  unutterable 
beauties  of  those  superb  realms.  From  time  to  time,  when  God,  in 
His  infinite  providence  deems  it  fit,  He  lifts  a  little  more  of  that  cor- 
ner, and  the  vision  of  new  and  more  important,  and  yet  more  exquis- 
ite beauties  bursts  before  some  chosen  genius,  and  a  new  revelation  is 


made  to  mankind.  This  h  the  history  of  all  discoveries,  George ;  and 
where  is  the  serious  thinker  who  shall  limit  God's  providence  from 
lifting  that  curtain  and  that  veil,  more  and  more,  in  the  course  of  ages? 
Or,  shall  any  one  say  that  the  revelation  is  exhausted  ;  that  the  uni- 
verse can  tell  us  no  more  of  the  unutterable  grandeur  of  its  bountiful 
Creator  than  the  little— the  very  little— we  know  ?" 

George.— "I  take  it  back,  doctor.    I  see  I  spoke  in  folly." 

Adele.— "I  am  glad  of  your  frank  acknowledgment." 

Doctor.— "Well,  let  us  go  on.  Please  to  state,  for  the  sake  of  Adele, 
here,  what  are  the  conditions  necessary  for  the  habitability  of  life, 
and  what  is  the  importance  of  each.  " 

George. — "The  first  necessary  condition  is  the  atmosphere  on  the 
surface  of  planets  and  its  influence  upon  life.  On  the  earth  the  at- 
mosphere is  a  mixture  of  79  parts  of  azote  and  21  of  oxygen;  from 
the  fish  to  man,  all  animals  owe  to  this  mixture,  moreor  less  modified, 
their  life  and  its  maintenance.  The  same  must  be  said  of  vegetables, 
which  in  day  time  breathe  in  a  manner  the  very  reverse  of  ours,  and 
at  night  in  a  manner  similar  to  ours.  Air,  therefore,  is  the  first  and 
the  indispensable  aliment  of  all  terrestrial  life.  Every  living  being  is 
dependent  on  the  atmosphere,  because  every  living  being  carries  in 
itself  a  mechanical  and  chemical  apparatus  of  respiration,  constructed 
according  to  the  interior  nature  of  the  atmosphere.  Besides  these 
properties  relative  to  the  indispensable  respiration  for  the  life  of  the 
globe,  the  atmospheric  fluid  possesses  others  no  less  remarkable.  If, 
for  the  internal  functions  of  the  body,  the  pulmonary  apparatus  is  so 
organized  as  to  transform,  incessantly,  the  blood  of  the  veins  into  arte- 
rial blood,  and  thus  ever  to  renew  the  principles  of  our  life,  for  the 
external  functions,  the  senses,  and  especially  those  of  sight  and  hear- 
ing, are  constructed  with  a  view  of  receiving  and  of  transmitting  to 
the  brain  all  the  external  influences  of  which  the  atmosphere  is  the 
medium." 

Adele.— "I  know,  of  course,  that  the  mechanism  of  the  organs  of 
speech  impress  on  the  atmosphere  those  vibrations  which  constitute 
sound  and  which  carry  the  voice  to  the  mechanism  of  the  ear ;  on  the 
other  hand,  the  mechanism  of  the  ear,  constructed  after  a  correlative 
susceptibility,  receives  those  vibrations  and  transmits  them  to  the 
brain  and  the  internal  senses." 

Doctor. — "And  what  is  the  consequence  of  the  agency  of  the  air  as 
to  our  organs  of  speech  and  hearing  ?" 

Adele. — "The  consequence  is  so  important  that,  even  supposing 
we  could  live  without  the  atmosphere,  without  it  we  should  become 
deaf  and  dumb  and  an  eternal  silence  would  reign  in  the  univers^-." 

George.— "What  we  have  said  of  the  senses  of  hearing  and  speak- 
ing must  be  said  also  of  the  organs  of  sight.    Everyone  knows  that 


210 

the  difiusion  of  light  is  uae  to  the  atmospheric  mass,  and  that,  with- 
out it,  no  objects  would  be  visible  except  those  which  are  directly- 
exposed  to  the  solar  light,  no  shadow  or  chiaro  oscuro ;  either  the 
dazzling  light  of  the  sun  or  the  complete  obscurity  of  the  night — 
neither  dawn  nor  twilight.  Nor  is  that  all ;  without  atmosphere  no 
clouds ;  a  monotonous  and  wearisome  light  uniformly  poured  down 
by  the  sun  without  the  least  variety  of  appearance  in  the  sky.  In 
fact,  there  would  be  no  longer  a  sky.  That  limpid  and  pure  azure  which 
charms  our  eyes  would  be  substituted  by  an  immen8ity,sombreand  dark. 
Those  splendid  combinations  of  light  in  our  sky  at  daybreak  and  at 
night;  those  enchanting  golden  rays  of  the  dawn  upon  our  land- 
scapes ;  the  red  clouds,  the  glories  of  the  twilight  upon  our  moun- 
tains ;  those  phatilaatic  creations  of  thousand  shades  of  color  succeed- 
ing each  other  around  us,  all  such  wonders  would  be  unknown  if 
the  earth  were  deprived  of  the  atmosphere ;  it  would  be  a  lugubrious, 
mournful  empire  such  as  Dante  imagined  in  the  silent  regions 
of  Purgatory  where  he  met  the  spirits  of  Limbo." 

Adele. — "I  would  never  have  given  you  credit,  Mr.  George,  for  so 
much  practical  fancy  as  you  are  displaying." 

George. — "Thanks  for  nothing.  Let  us  go  further.  The  atmos- 
phere envelops  our  globe  like  a  reservoir  which  preserves  both  the 
solar  and  the  terrestrial  heat.  Without  it,  the  heat  would  be  sent  up 
into  the  higher  regions  of  space,  and  our  earth  would  be  reduced  to 
the  lot,  pretty  much  like  that  of  the  high  altitudes  of  the  Andes  and 
the  Himalayas  or  Alpine  peaks,  where  the  atmosphere,  being  highly 
rarefied,  there  reigns  but  a  desert  of  snow  and  the  sombre  silence  of 
death." 

Doctor. — "Pass  on  to  the  influence  of  the  atmosphere  upon  water, 
George." 

George. — "It  is  well  known  that  water  constitutes  the  principal 
element  of  all  liquids  in  action,  in  the  terrestrial  disposition  of  things, 
either  in  the  vessels  of  animals  or  in  the  tissues  of  plants,  that  such 
element,  moreover,  is  most  indispensable  for  the  function  of  life,  and 
that  without  it  no  organic  transformations  could  take  place,  either  in 
the  animal  or  vegetable  kingdom.  Now,  the  existence  of  the  atmos- 
phere is  a  necessary  condition  to  the  existence  of  water  or  of  any 
other  liquid  on  the  surface  of  a  planet.  Its  absence  implies,  by  the 
very  fact,  the  absence  of  all  liquids." 

Adele.— "Why  ?" 

George. — "Because  all  liquid  mass  or  collection,  to  be  formed  and 
to  be  maintained  and  preserved,  necessitates  some  kind  of  atmos- 
pheric pressure.  All  worlds,  therefore,  which  should  be  without  at- 
mosphere, by  that  very  fact,  would  be  deprived  of  all  kind  of  liquids." 

Adele. — "Well,  I  am  more  than  convinced  that  the  atmosphere  is 


211 

the  first  necessary  condition  upon  our  planet  to  make  life  possible  or 
agreeable.    Are  there  auy  other?" 

George. — "Certainly.  The  next  condition  is  that  there  must  be  a 
certain  amount  of  heat  and  light  to  render  life  possible.  I  suppose  it 
is  not  necessary  for  me  to  go  into  any  lengthy  discussion  to  prove  that 
absolute  condition  for  life.  No  organic  or  animal  being  can  live  in 
the  absence  of  the  necessary  heat ;  without  it,  it  freezes  and  dies.  A 
plant  without  light  also  withers  and  perishes." 

Adele. — "I  underitand  that  perfectly." 

Doctor. — "Now,  the  conclusion  ie  that,  perhaps,  with  the  exception 
of  the  moon,  we  find  in  all  the  other  planets  of  our  system  these  or 
similar  conditions  of  life  to  be  verified." 

Adele.— "You  don't  say,  uncle?" 

Doctor. — "To  be  sure.  And  to  start  from  heat  and  light,  I  may 
mention  the  calculations  of  astronomers  about  the  quantity  of  heat 
and  light  which  the  planetary  worlds  receive  from  the  sun.  Taking 
the  earth  as  a  starting  point  of  comparison,  we  find  that  Mercury  re- 
ceives seven  times  more  light  and  heat  than  our  globe,  Venus  twice 
the  amount,  Mars  one-half  less,  the  telescopic  planets  seven  times  less, 
Jupiter  twenty-seven  times  less,  Saturn  ninety  times  less,  Uranus 
three  hundred  and  ninety  times  less,  and  finally,  Neptune  nine  hun- 
dred times  less." 

Adele. — "Uncle,  what  do  you  mean  by  telescopic  planets  ?" 

Doctor. — "Those  which  have  been  discovered  through  the  tele- 
scope. Those  respective  distances  of  the  planets  from  the  solar  focus, 
among  which  the  Earth  exhibits  no  particular  privilege,  determines  a 
gradual  diminution  in  the  temperaturcof  their  surfaces  from  Mercury 
to  Neptune,  and  those  distances  must  be  taken  as  the  fundamental 
basis  in  the  investigation  of  their  temperature,  because  it  has  been 
demonstrated  that  the  central  fire  of  each  planet  has  but  a  very  trifling 
influence  upon  the  heat  on  its  surface." 

Adele.— "Then,  how  could  life  be  possible,  uncle,  on  the  planet 
Mercury  which  receives  seven  times  more  he.it  and  light  from  the 
Sun  ;  the  inhabitants  there,  I  am  afraid,  would  be  roasted  to  a  cinder, 
and,  on  the  other  hand,  on  the  planets  Jupiter,  Saturn,  Uranus  and 
Neptune,  they  would  be  frozen  to  death  ?" 

Doctor. — "What  we  have  demonstrated  is  that  on  these  planets 
there  is  heat  and  light.  Now,  God  Almighty  may  have  adapted  the 
conditions  of  the  inhabitants  of  each  of  those  planets  to  the  peculiar 
conditions  of  each,  and  where  man,  or  the  animals  and  plants  of  our 
globe  would  be  burned  or  frozen,  other  beings  with  a  different  body 
and  organs  may  live  in  comfort." 

Adele.— "I  see,  the  objection  would  only  hold  for  the  living  beings 
with  organism  such  as  we  are  acquainted  with." 


212 

George. — "Even  in  certain  parts  of  our  globe  animals  and  plants 
live  and  flourish  when  others  would  perish  through  too  much  heat  or 
cold." 

Doctor. — "Let  us  pass  to  the  atmosphere.  George,  is  there  any 
atmosphere  on  the  surface  of  the  planets  ?" 

George. — "To  answer  your  question,  I  must  remark  that  when  we 
speak  ot  the  atmosphere  on  the  planets  others  than  our  globe,  we  do 
not  intend  to  affirm  that  the  air  and  the  water  of  those  planeta  are  the 
same  which  we  breathe  and  drink.  Nothing  goes  to  prove  that  in  all 
cases  the  liquids  and  gases  of  the  planets  are  of  the  same  chemical 
composition  as  those  of  the  earth,  I  said  in  all  cases,  because  there 
are  some  notable  exceptions  to  the  statements  just  made.  Spectral 
analysis  has  demonstrated  that  in  Mars  and  Venus  the  water  is 
chemically  the  same  as  ours.  But  there  is,  on  the  contrary,  a  remark 
able  difference  between  the  liquids  and  the  gases  of  Jupiter  and 
Saturn  and  those  of  our  globe." 

Adele. — "Pray,  what  do  you  mean  by  spectral  analysis,  and  how 
does  that  demonstrate  that  the  water  in  Mars  and  Venus  is  the  same 
as  ours  ?" 

George. — "I  presume  you  know  what  is  meant  by  the  solar  spec- 
trum ?" 

Adele. — "I  have  an  idea,  but  I  would  like  to  have  it  explained  by 
yourself,  who  can  do  it  so  happily  and  with  such  lucidity  of  style  and 
language." 

George. — "You  are  getting  rather  profuse  in  compliments,  Miss 
Adele.  Well,  let  us  take  a  prism — that  is,  a  piece  of  crystal  having 
three  angles;  let  a  ray  of  the  sun's  light  pass  through  it,  and  what  is 
the  consequence?  The  light,  which  is  composed  of  seven  principal 
colors,  is  divided  and  a  belt  appears  behind  the  prism,  consisting  of 
seven  colors,  in  the  following  order :  violet,  indigo  blue,  green,  yellow, 
orange  and  red.  The  colors  divided  themselves,  each  one  according 
to  its  characteristic  traits :  the  more  glowing,  the  red,  does  not  allow 
itself  to  deviate  from  its  straight  path  and  crosses  the  prism  in  a 
straight  line ;  the  orange  undergoes  a  little  the  influence  of  the  prism 
and  bents  a  little  and  comes  to  place  itself  next  to  the  red  ;  the  yel- 
low feels  that  influence  more  and  places  itself  next;  the  green  and 
then  the  blue  are  yet  more  pliable  and  feeble,  and  come  next  in  order, 
followed  by  the  indigo  and  the  violet.  This  little  colored  flag  has  the 
name  of  solar  spectrum." 

Adele. — "Many  thanks  for  your  explanation,  but  what  has  that  to 
with  our  subject?" 

George. — "Excuse  me  for  a  moment  till  I  get  to  it.  The  length  of 
the  spectrum  represents  nothing  but  light,  that  is,  the  solar  rays  sensi- 
ble to  the  retina  of  our  eye.    Our  eye  begins  to  see  when  the  ethereal 


213 

vibrations  reach  the  number  of  four  hundred  and  fifty  trillions,  and 
ends  when  they  exceed  seven  hundred  trillions,  purple  violet ;  but 
beyond  that  nature  alwaj's  acta  without  our  perceiving  it.  Certain 
chemical  substances,  for  instance  the  plate  of  the  photograph,  see  much 
farther  than  purple  violet.  Our  ears  hear  the  aerial  vibration  from  32 
a  second  (bass)  to  o("),CK)0  (sharp),  beyond  that  we  hear  no  more.  Thus 
are  our  senses  limited,  but  not  the  facts  of  nature.  The  colors  are 
like  the  notes  of  the  gamut — eflects  of  numbers;  in  music  as  well  as 
in  painting,  they  are  notes." 

Adele. — "Exceedingly  obliged  for  so  much  information,  but  can 
see  no  drift  yet." 

George. — ''Patience  yet  awhile.  It  is  in  the  molecular  arrange 
ment  of  transparent  substance  that  the  different  reflections  of  light, 
that  is,  colors,  originate.  That  rose  which  opens  its  calyx  in  the 
middle  ©f  flower-beds  receives  the  same  light  as  the  lily,  the  violet, 
the  geranium,  etc.;  and  yet  it  is  so  different  from  the  others.  What 
is  the  cause  ?  The  molecular  reflection  produces  the  whole  difierence, 
and  one  may  say,  without  exaggeration,  that  objects  are  of  all  colors 
except  of  those  in  which  they  appear  to  be  decked.  Why  is  that 
meadow  so  green  ?  Because  it  absorbs  all  other  colors  except  the  green 
of  which  it  will  have  none,  and  casts  away  from  it.  White  is 
formed  by  the  reflecting  nature  of  the  object  which  absorbs  nothing 
and  sends  back  everything  ;  black,  by  a  surface  which  absorbs  every- 
thing and  returns  nothing." 

Adele. — "Pass  on,  Mr.  George." 

George. — "Did  you  ever  hear  of  the  microscopic  lines  of  the  spec- 
trum ?" 

Adele  — "No,  sir." 

George. — "In  1815  Fraunhofer,  a  Bavarian  optician,  was  studying 
the  solar  spectrum,  in  order  to  find  in  it  some  fixed  points  which 
might  be  independent  of  the  nature  of  the  prism  used  to  produce 
the  spectrum,  when  he  met  with  a  happy  discovery.  He  observed 
that  by  giving  the  prism  a  certain  special  position  one  could  see 
suddenly  to  appear  in  the  spectral  image,  certain  obscure  rays  cut- 
ting transversally  the  seven  colors  of  the  spectrum.  Tht^e  are 
calUd  microscopiclines,  and  Fraunhofer  counted  six  hundred  of  them 
in  the  spectrum,  later  on  Brewster  counted  two  thousand,  n(nv  tboy 
have  reached  the  number  of  five  thousand.  These  rays  of  the  solar 
spectrum  are  constant  and  invariable  whenever  tne  spectrum  which 
is  observed  is  the  effect  of  solar  light.  They  are  found  in  tht- 
light  of  the  day,  in  that  of  the  clouds  and  of  all  terrestrial  objects. 
This  discovery  of  the  microscDpic  lines  was  followed  by  another  vft 
more  important.  It  was  discovered  that  by  observing  across  a  prism 
a  ray  of   light  coming  from,  some  terrestrial  luminous  object,  for  in- 


214 

stance,  a  jet  of  gas,  not  only  a  spectrum  was  produced  similar  to  that 
of  the  sun's  light,  but  that  such  spectrum  is  also  traversed  by  lines, 
and  that  the  distribution  and  arrangement  of  these  lines  difier  accord- 
ing to  the  nature  of  the  light  to  be  examined,  and  that  they  present 
a  constant  and  invariable  order  characteristic  of  each  one.  This 
has  given  rise  to  what  is  called  spectral  analysis  and  to  the  spectro- 
scope." 

Adele.— "How  ?" 

George. — "Do  you  not  see  that  if  every  substance  seen  through  a 
prism  reflects  lines  so  arranged  as  to  point  out  its  own  particular 
nature,  it  follows  that  from  the  particular  arrangement  of  the  lines 
reflected  in  the  spectroscope,  an  instrument  invented  purposely  to 
analyze  those  lines,  we  can  tell  the  nature  of  the  substance  ?" 

Adele. — "I  see,  now,  from  the  spectrum  of  each  luminous  object, 
and  from  the  particular  arrangement  of  the  dark  lines  seen  on  the 
spectrum,  we  can  tell  the  nature  of  the  substance  to  be  observed.  And, 
I  presume,  that  is  the  way  you  can  tell  whether  the  water  in  Venus  is 
of  the  same  nature  as  ours." 

Doctor. — "YeS;  and  a  great  many  more  things.  In  fact  this  has 
been  one  of  the  most  upeful  and  most  beautiful  discoveries  of  modera 
times.  By  it  we  can  tell  wi I  h  as  much  certainty  and  accuracy  what 
is  the  nature  of  the  substances  and  objects,  lying  far,  far  away  from  us, 
millions  and  millions  of  miles,  just  as  if  we  were  looking  at 
them  with  our  naked  eye  and  touching  them  with  our 
hands.  Let  us  now  wind  up  our  scientific  argument  in  favor  of  the 
plurality  of  worlds.  We  have  seen  that  the  planets,  and  the  sun  even, 
present  very  little  difficulties  in  the  way  of  their  being  inhabited,  that 
the  essential  requisites  for  life  are  substantially  to  be  found  in  worlds 
other  than  our  globe,  and  that  with  little  variation  in  theorganizition 
of  them  to  adapt  them  to  their  peculiar  abodes,  there  is  no  insur- 
mountable difficulty  against  those  worlds  being  peopled  with  myriads 
of  living  beings.  The  philosophical  arguments  will  put  this  proba- 
Hlity  in  a  much  better  and  stronger  light." 


THIRTY  SECOND  ARTICLE. 

PHILOSOPHICAL   PROOFS    FOR   THE   PLURALITY  OF    WORLDS. 

Doctor. — "Before  we  come  to  all  those  philosophical  probabilities 
Qr  proofs,  if  we  may  so  call  them  in  a  certain  sense,  for  the  plurality  of 
worlds,  it  will  be  very  useful  to  recall  some  of  the  facts  of  astronomy 
upon  the  grandeur  and  immensity  of  those  worlds  which  roll  in  space. 
The  knowledge  of  such  facts  will  not  only  facilitate  the  understanding 


of  the  proofs  we  are  going  to  allege,  but  alec  tet  theax  in  a  stronger 
and  more  luminous  point  of  view.  To  start  from  the  lowest  and  the 
most  iusigniticant  facts,  we  will  describe  the  immensity  of  our  own 
Bolsr  system." 

Adele. — "Mr.  George,  I  suspect  your  services  are  on  dematid  now  ?" 
Doctor. — "Yes,  tell  us  about  our  own  solar  and  planetary  system." 
George. — "I  will  begin  by  the  Sun.  According  to  the  most  recent 
observation,  it  seems  to  be  demonstrated  that  the  Sun  is  entirely  in  a 
state  of  temperature  so  high  that  it  must  be  entirely  liquid  if  not 
"aporous.  It  seems,  according  to  the  expression  of  Kepler,  a  gigantic 
magnet  upholding,  by  the  simple  laws  of  reciprocal  attraction,  all  the 
other  worlds  of  the  group  which  it  governs,  a  permanent  focus  or  re- 
pository of  electricity,  setting  in  motion  on  all  these  worlds,  that  im- 
ponderable agent  which  plays  such  great  part  among  the  forces  in 
action  of  our  system." 

Adele. — "I  suppose  you  mean  ether  ?" 

George. — "Certainly.  The  globe  of  the  Sun  is  one  million  three 
hundred  thousand  times  larger  than  our  Earth.  Ita  specific  weight  is 
three  hundred  and  twenty-four  thousand  times  greater  than  that  of 
the  Earth  and  seven  hundred  times  greater  than  that  of  all  the 
planets  and  their  satellites  put  together.  Spectral  analysis  has 
proved  that  the  solar  globe  is  surrounded  by  an  atmosphere  impreg 
nated  with  vapors  of  the  same  materials  as  the  Sun,  vapors  in  which 
predominate  those  of  iron,  calcium,  magnesia,  and  hydrogen. 
It  has  a  movement  of  rotation  around  its  axis,  which  it  accom- 
plishes in  twenty-five  of  our  days,  but  such  movement  does 
not  produce  on  the  surface  of  the  Sun,  as  on  that  of  the  planets, 
the  alternations  of  day  and  night.  It  is  not  known  by  what 
mysterious  agent  are  the  solar  light  and  heat  engendered.  We 
may  eafely  affirm  that,  in  spite  of  the  enormous  quantity  of  both 
which  it  frt-nds  out  in  space,  we  cannot  observe  any  diminution  in  its 
disc.  A  mysterious  force,  which  has  been  named  universal  gravita- 
tion, caui^f'S  the  heavenly  bodies  of  our  system  to  hang  and  revolve 
around  the  Sun;  planets,  satellites,  asteroids,  comets,  meteors,  em- 
bracing under  one  law  and  government  all  the  beings  which  the 
Sun  illuminates.  The  first  planet  which  we  meet,  on  starting  from 
the  centi-Hofthe  system  to  the  periphery,  is  Mercury.  It  is  distant 
from  the  Sun  about  forty  two  millions  six  hundred  and  sixty-nine 
thousand  niiles.  It  is  smaller  than  our  Earth  ;  its  diameter  not  ex- 
ceeding ix  hundre^  and  sixty-nine  thousand  miles ;  whereas,  thai 
of  the  Earth,  exceeds  nine  thousand  five  hundred  and  sixty- nine 
miles.  1  he  next  is  Venus,  that  beautiful  planet  which  precedes  the 
morning  dawn  and  the  night.  It  is  in  its  mean  distance  sixty-six 
millions   >ne  hundred  and  forty  thousand  miles  from  the  Sun.     The 


216 

third  in  order  is  the  Earth,  which  is  ninety-one  millions  four  hun- 
dred and  thirty  thousand  miles  from  the  Sun.  Sixty  millions  of  miles 
further  is  seen  Mars.  About  one  hundred  millions  of  miles  further 
appears  a  kind  of  zone  or  belt  in  which  have  been  discovered 
seventy  fragments  of  planets.  Beyond  that  zone  gravitates  the  colos- 
sal globe  of  Jupiter,  four  hundred  and  ninety  eight  millions  six  hun- 
dred and  thirty-nine  thousand  miles  at  its  greatest  distance  from  the 
Sun.  Next  appears  Saturn,  the  mean  distance  of  which  is  eight  hun- 
dred and  seventy-two  millions  and  thirty-seven  thousand  miles. 
Uranus  comes  next,  which  at  its  greatest  distance  is  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  millions  five  hundred  and  sixty-five  thousand  miles 
from  the  Sun.  The  last,  lately  discovered,  is  Neptune,  three  milliards 
three  hundred  millions  distant  from  the  centre  of  the  system.  The 
year  of  Neptune  is  equivalent  to  one  hundred  and  sixty-four  years  of 
our  own." 

Adele. — "Pass  on  to  the  satellites,  Mr.  George." 

George. — "I  am  not  making  up  a  compendium  of  astronomy.  I 
merely  alluded  to  our  own  solar  system  in  order  to  pave  the  way  to  the 
description  of  the  immensity  of  the  heavens.  It  appears,  then,  that  our 
own  planetary  system,  as  I  have  pointed  it  out,  is  terminated  by  the 
planet  Neptune,  which  measures  twenty-one  milliards  of  miles  in  cir- 
cumference. Still,  the  empire  of  the  Sun  is  not  limited  by  such  narrow 
and  puny  limits.  Besides  the  possibility  of  the  existence  of  other 
planets  revolving  beyond  its  orbit,  innumerable  comets,  subject  to 
solar  attraction,  furrow  on  every  side  and  in  every  sense  the  plains  of 
the  heavens,  and  return  from  time  to  time  and  at  definite  epochs  to 
quench  their  thirst  at  the  solar  source,  a  perennial  focus  and  fountaiu 
of  light  and  electricity.  I  shall  say  nothing  uf  the  number  of  these 
comets,  of  their  nature  or  of  the  distance  wnich  they  travel.  It  will 
Huffice  to  mention  that  the  great  comet  of  1811  employed  three  thou 
yand  years  to  accomplish  its  revolution,  and  that  it  places  in  its  travels 
between  it  and  the  Sun  no  less  than  forty  milliards  nine  hundred  and 
fifty  millions  of  miles  of  distance." 

Doctor. — "But  whatever  may  be  the  extension  and  the  immensity 
of  the  solar  dominion,  the  preceding  magnitudes  and  figures  which 
appear  so  enormous  can  hardly  be  compared,  owing  to  their  insignifi- 
cance, to  the  magnitudes  observed  ?n  stellar  astronomy.  In  the  latter 
science  we  no  longer  count  by  miles  bv'^t  by  thousands  of  miles.  Each 
star  in  heaven  is  a  sun  brilliant  of  its  own  light.  They  have  measured 
the  luminous  intensity  of  the  stars  nearest  to  us,  ^d  it  has  been  found 
that  some  of  them,  like  Sirius,  which  is  called  the  Giant  Sun,  are  now 
lightsome  and  more  voluminous  than  our  Sun,  that  the  latter  placed 
at  the  distance  of  Sirius  would  only  appear  to  us  as  a  little  star  of  third 
magnitude.    These  vas^.  and  brilliant  suns  are  centres  of  magnificent 


217 

systems,  some  of  which  may  be  like  to  ours,  some  may  be  inferior,  and 
tiie  great  majority  of  them  much  superior  iu  extent  and  in  planetary 
circles  to  our  system.  These  stars  or  shus  are  innumerable,  and  fill 
space  at  a  distance  one  from  another  perfectly  amazing.  The  star 
nearest  to  us,  for  instance,  is  twenty-four  trillions  of  miles  distant 
from  our  Sun.  The  others,  like  Cygnus,  Sirius,  Vega,  the  Polar  Star, 
Capella,  count  the  distance  from  the  Sun  at  hundreds  and  thousands 
of  trillions.  But  these  are  the  nearest  stars;  as  to  the  millions  and 
millions  of  others  which  people  the  immensity  of  space,  it  is  naturally 
impossible  to  reckon  their  distance." 

George. — "Astronomers  have  tried  to  give  an  idea  of  such  distance 
by  taking  as  basis  and  measure  the  velocity  of  light." 

Adele.— "Do  let  us  have  some  of  these  calculations!" 

George.— "According  to  the  latest  and  most  accurate  measure,  we 
know  that  light  travels  at  the  rate  of  two  hundred  thousand  mile  a  sec- 
ond, cr  twelve  millious  a  minute.  And  yet  it  employs  threeyears  and  six 
months  to  reach  us  from  the  star  nearest  to  us  in  the  Constellation  of 
Centaur.  It  travels  14  years  to  reach  us  from  Sirius  and  21  years 
from  Vega.  The  luminous  rays  sent  us  by  the  Polar  Star  arrive  after 
tifty  years.  Those  .sent  us  by  the  Goat  travel  seventy-two  years  before 
reaching  us.  But  beyond  these  stars  near  to  us  the  distance  is  much 
greater.  The  light  of  the  last  stars,  seen  through  a  telescope,  nine 
feet  in  diameter,  employs  one  thousand  years,  and  that  of  the  last  stars 
seen  through  a  telescope,  eighteen  feet,  requires  two  thousand  seven 
hundred  years  to  reach  us,  and  finally,  it  is  well  known  that  the  1  i<,'h  t  of 
some  of  them  requires  five  thousand,  ten  thousand,  and  one  hundred 
thousand  years  to  strike  the  earth." 

Adele.— "How  great  is  God  in  the  heavens !  Truly  may  He  be 
called  the  God  of  the  heavenly  armies." 

Doctor.- "To  realize  such  wonders,  let  us  suppose  that  the  mag- 
nificent Sirius  should  become  extinct  to-day  by  some  catastrophe,  as 
the  light  which  emanates  from  it  requires  fourteen  years  to  reach  us 
we  should  yet  see  it  after  fourteen  years  in  the  same  place  in  the 
heavens,  whence,  in  reality,  it  had  long  disappeared.  If  the  stars  were 
all  annihilated  today  they  would,  nevertheless,  shine  for  years,  for 
Centuries,  fur  thousands  of  years  and  centuries.  If,  from  describing 
the  ma.nitude  and  distance  of  the  starry  heavens,  we  pass  to  the  num- 
ber of  them  here,  new  realms  of  wonder  are  opened  before  us.  George, 

give  U3  some  idea  of  it  ?" 

George.— "It  is  well  known  that,  in  order  to  facilitate  the  pointing  out 

of  the  light  of  the  stars,  they  have  been  classified  according  to  the  order  of 
size  and  magnitude,  from  the  point  of  view  of  tho  same  light  and  bril- 
liancy. It  isaleo  well  known  that  the  denomination  of  magnitude  does 
not  apply  to  the  real  dimensions  of  the  stars  which  are  unknown  to  us 


218 

except  by  their  apparent  splendor ;  the  stars  which  appear  to  us  the 
smallest,  being  considered  as  the  most  distant.  Now,  we  count  in 
both  hemispheres,  eighteen  stars  of  the  first  magnitude,  sixty  of  the 
second,  two  hundred  of  the'  third,  five  hundred  of  the  fourth,  one 
thousand  four  hundred  of  the  fifth,  four  thousand  of  the  sixth.  Here 
winds  up  the  number  of  the  stars  viewed  with  the  naked  eye.  But 
the  progression  continues  in  the  same  ratio  beyond  that  limit,  and  in- 
creases in  the  same  manner  according  as  we  consider  the  smallebt 
magnitudes.  This  augmentation  will  be  the  more  easily  understood 
the  more  we  reflect  that  stars  appear  the  smallest  in  proportion  ae 
their  distance  from  the  earth  is  the  greatest.  Beyond,  then,  the  sixth, 
we  count  the  stars  visible  by  the  telescope ;  and  to  give  an  idea  of  the 
numerical  increase  of  these  stars,  we  say  that  the  eighth  magnitude 
contains  forty  thousand,  the  ninth  one  hundred  and  twenty  thou- 
sand, the  tenth  three  hundred  and  sixty  thousand.  The  progression 
continues:  Arago  counted  nine  million  five  hundred  and  sixty-six 
thousand  stars  of  the  thirteenth  magnitude,  twenty-eight  million  six 
hundred  and  ninety-seven  thousand  of  the  fourteenth,  and  valued  at 
I'orty- three  millions,  the  whole  number  of  stars  visible  to  the  four- 
teenth. For  the  sixteenth  magnitutc  the  number  arises  to  seventy- 
five  millions  of  stars  visible  through  the  telescope.  To  this,  we  must 
add,  that  a  great  number  of  stars  which  appeared  single  to  the  naked 
eye,  were  found  to  be  double  when  seen  through  the  telescopes  of  Her 
schel,  Struve  and  Lord  Kosse.  Let  us  remark,  now,  that  the  greatest 
part  of  the  stars  seen  in  the  heaven,  and  particularly  those  belonging 
f  0  the  Milky  Way,  form  a  group  called  in  astronomy,  a  Nebula.  Now, 
if  it  be  asked  how  many  suns  are  found  in  the  Milky  Way,  we  answer 
that,  through  the  aid  of  his  powerful  telescope,  William  Herschel,  in 
a  quarter  of  an  hour,  on  the  restricted  plane  of  fifteen  minutes  of 
diameter,  saw  the  prodigious  number  of  one  hundred  and  sixteen 
thousand  stars  pass  before  his  eye;  and  applying  that  calculation  to 
the  plane  of  the  Milky  Way,  he  found  no  less  than  eighteen  millions 
of  suns.  Of  course,  this  is  one  Nebula.  Who  could  count  the 
number  of  suns  which  are  found  in  other  nebulte?  Who  could 
number  the  latter  in  the  far,  far  distant  depths  of  space?  Such  cal- 
culations are  absolutely  beyond  the  power  of  any  human  intellect." 

Doctor. — "Let  us  sum  up,  in  a  few  words,  the  few  facts  we  have  given 
of  astronomical  science,  and  afterwards  draw  the  conclusion  which 
naturally  springs  from  them.  First,  the  stars  are  so  many  Suns  simi- 
lar to  ours,  and  shining  with  native  light;  second,  these  system.-*, 
which  may  be  ranked  in  the  first  order,  and  which  are  similar  to  our 
own  system,  are  governed  by  the  same  law  of  gravitation,  and  to  the 
^ame  laws  discovered  by  Kepler  as  regulating  the  planets 
which    gravitate    around    our  Sun  ;     third,    the    Milky    Way    is    a 


219 

belt,  formed  by  an  enormous  grouping  of  complicated  masres  of 
stars,  each  one  of  which  may  be  regarded  as  implying  innumer- 
able systems  of  superior  order;  fourth,  besides  the  stars,  we  fmd 
iu  the  heavens  very  many  masses  of  luminous  matter  shining  with 
their  own  native  light,  not  as  yet  concreted  in  delinite  bodies,  but.  iu 
gaseous  state,  which  form  the  nebuhe.  They  form  systems  apart, 
and  in  spite  of  their  gaseous  state  they  have  forms  perceptibly  con- 
stant; fifth,  all  these  iloatin  space  at  most  enormous  distances;  sixth, 
but  immense  as  this  space  is  supposed  to  be, yet  it  does  not  constuu.u 
the  real  and  true  boundaries  of  creation,  because  the  very  best  and 
greatest  instruments,  such  as  the  colossal  telescopes  of  Lord  Kosse 
Russel,  Melbourne,  in  Australia,  Washington,  Paris,  cannot  penetrate 
through  the  tirmament,  which  is  truly  unfathomable,  ' 

Adele. — "Then  the  conclusion  you  wish  to  draw,  uncie,  is  the  im- 
mense and  boundless  grandeur  of  the  universe,  the  unutterable  mag- 
nitude of  the  masses  of  worlds  which  roll  in  space,  and  the  compara- 
tive littleness  and  insignificance  of  the  planet  on  which  we  live." 

Doctor. — "Certainly  I  do.  And  this  simply  with  a  view  of  formu- 
lating the  arguments  which  philosophy  discovers  in  favor  of  the 
plurality  of  worlds.  Now,  listen  to  the  first  one.  Why  did  God 
create  the  universe,  Adele  ?*' 

Adele. — "Why,  to  manifest  and  to  make  known  His  own  infinite 
j)erfections  by  means  of  the  very  slight  expression  and  copy  which 
He  could  effect  in  the  worla  He  created." 

Doctor. — "But  to  whom  was  this  manifestation  to  be  made  ?  We 
may  consiaer  all  the  beings  of  creation  as  so  many  tongues  proclaim- 
ing loudly  ihe  glories  of  the  Creator  and  the  unparalleled  and  infinite 
beauties  of  their  pattern.  But  to  whom  should  these  eloquent 
tongues  speak  ?    Whom  should  they  address  ?" 

Adele. — "Surely  to  man,  or  some  one  like  man,  who  could 
both  see  and  perceive  those  beauties  and  praise  and  glorify  the 
Creator." 

Doctor. — "Right.  And  suppose  all  those  myriads  of  millions  of 
worlds  of  realms  of  unutterable  grandeur,  suppose  that  immense  and 
colossal  galaxy  of  beauties,  such  as  astronomy  has  manifested  to  have 
been  for  innumerable  centuries  without  any  intelligent  spectator, 
without  any  enraptured  admirer,  do  you  not  see  that  in  such  supposi- 
tion we  find  something  wanting  in  the  design  of  the  Creator;  it 
would  seem  to  us  as  if  all  these  worlds  were  existing  for  so  long  with- 
out accomplishing  the  end  for  which  they  were  made  ?  On  the  other 
hand,  fill  these  immense  worlds  with  intelligent  spectators,  and  what 
is  the  consequence  ?  Why,  that  at  every  epoch  of  time,  and  in  all 
points  of  space,  a  canticle  of  glory,  a  hymn  of  praise,  a  song  of  admira- 
tion, a  jubilee  of  complacency  an  1  delight,  would  be  rising  up  to  the 


220 

great  Creator  from  myriads  and  tens  of  thousands  oi  millions  of 
worlds  and  realms  filled  up,  and  teeming  with  inhabitants  endowed, 
perhaps,  with  an  intelligence  more  noble,  more  sublime  and  lofty, 
soaring  in  the  highest  regions  of  truth,  intelligences  vaster,  more  pro- 
found, more  appreciative  than  ours,  and  therefore  intelligences  which 
could  understand  and  admire  much  better  than  mankind  the  gran- 
deur and  immensity  of  the  Creator." 

Adele. — "Certainly ;  it  seems  to  me  that  the  end  for  which  the  world 
was  made  would  have  been  better  attained  in  this  hypothesis  than  in 
the  other." 

Doctor. — "And  hence  is  it  that  the  greatest  geniuses  of  mankind 
have  leaned  towards  the  plurality  of  the  worlds.  They  have  delighted 
in  thinking  that  the  immense  realms  of  the  universe  were  filled  with 
spectators  of  the  great  panorama  of  Creation,  and  were  charmed  in 
offering  to  Him  from  the  very  depths  of  their  hearts  the  song  and' 
canticle  of  praise  and  thanksgiving.  But  there  are  other  argumefits 
which  we  will  consider  at  our  next  interview." 


THIRTY-THIRD  ARTICLE. 

PHILOSOPHICAL   ARGUMENT    FOR   THE   PLURALITY   OF   WORLDS.   . 

Adele. — "The  first  argument  proving  the  plurality  of  worlds  has 
taken  a  very  strong  hold  on  my  mind.  It  charms  me  to  think  that  in 
numberless  worlds  there  are  intelligent  inhabitants  who  sing  the 
praises  of  the  Creator  and  exalt  His  infinite  grandeur  and  excellence, 
as  manifested  in  the  works  which  they  see  and  admire,  the  end  for 
•which  God  created  all  things.  Now,  I  am  anxious  to  hear  the  other 
arguments." 

Doctor. — ''The  other  arguments  are  all  founded  on  that  truth  to 
which  you  have  now  alluded,  that  God's  object  in  creating  the  uni- 
verse was  to  manifest  in  His  works  His  unutterable  and  unfathomable 
greatness  and  infinite  perfections.  For  instance,  it  is  a  truth  and 
principle  admitted  by  all  Catholic  theologians  and  philosophers,  when 
they  want  to  determine,  more  or  less,  the  number  of  the  diflerent 
creatures  which  God  has  made,  that  such  number  must  be  inferred 
from  the  place  which  each  creature  holds  in  the  scale  of  being  ;  those 
holding  a  higher  place  in  the  scale  having  been  created  in  larger 
number." 

Adele. — "I  don't  catch  the  meaning  of  the  principle." 

Doctor. — "We  have,  as  you  remember,  divided  all  the  beings  of  the 
universe  into  five  different  kingdoms:  the  inorganic  world,  the  living 
and  organic  world,  the  sensitive  and  animal  kingdom,  the  intelligent 
world  united  to  a  body,  and  tbe  purely  intelligent  world." 


221 

Adele. — '"T  remember  that." 

Doctor. — "Now,  suppose  we  raise  the  question :  Were  purely  in- 
organic species  created  in  grfater  number  than  organic  and  living 
species,  or  were  the  latter  created  in  greater  number  than  sensitive 
species,  or  were  sensitive  specicfl  created  in  greater  number  than  in- 
tellectual creatures  united  to  a  body,  or  were  these  in  greater  number 
than  purely  intellectual  species  ?  What  is  the  principle  which  must 
guide  us  in  solving  the  problem  ?  St.  Thomas,  followed  by  all 
theologians  and  philosophers,  answers  that  the  principle  which  must 
euide  us  in  determining  the  question,  is  the  place  which  the  species 
holds  in  the  scale  of  being,  those  holding  the  lowest  place  having 
been  created  in  the  smallest  number,  and  tho^e  holding  the  highest 
having  been  created  in  the  greatest  number.  Tnis  is  a  cosmological  law." 

George. —  'I  cannot  see  the  reason  why." 

Adele. — "Nor  I." 

Doctor. — "I  will  give  you  the  beautiful  reason  of  St.  Thomas. 
What  is  the  end  or  object  for  whicli  God  created  the  universe  ?  That 
by  and  through  every  creature  composing  it  He  might  manifest 
His  own  infinite  perfectionp.  We  have  said  it  so  many  times  that 
it  would  seem  useless  to  repeat  it.  Yet  that  truth  is  so  fundamental 
and  impregnated  with  so  many  truths,  that  we  must  fall  back  upon  it 
even  at  the  danger  of  being  thought  tiresome.  Now  mark  the  con- 
sequence, both  of  you.  Which  of  the  creatures  of  the  universe  be- 
longing to  the  five  different  kingdoms  do  believe,  can  best  express 
God's  perfections,  those  which  are  lowest  in  the  scale  or  those  which 
stand  at  the  summit?" 

George. — ''Evidently  those  which  stand  at  the  summit  as  being 
more  comprehensive." 

Adele. — "Whit  do  you  mean  by  comprehensive?" 

George. — "I  meiu  that  they  contain  more  perfection.  For  in- 
stance, inorganic  bodies  do  not  exhibit  any  better  idea  than  that  of 
simple  existence.  Organic  beings,  besides  the  idea  of  exisience,  imply 
the  idea  of  internal  self  movement,  which  apprehends,  assimilates, 
and  transforms  external  beings  to  itself  for  its  own  life  and  growth. 
Sensitive  beings,  besides  existence  and  spontaneous  self  movement, 
imply  a  certain  kind  of  knowledge, and  finally, intellectual  beings, im- 
ply knowledge  of  the  abstract  universal  and  the  infinite.  Conse- 
quently, the  higher  we  ascend  in  the  scale  of  beings  the  more  compre- 
hensive we  find  their  essences  to  be." 

Adele. —  'And  what  inference  do  you  draw  from  that  ?' 

Doctor.— Evidently  that,  as  God's  nature  and  perfections  are  an 
infinite  abyss  of  being,  tney  can  be  better  imitated  by  creatures,  the 
essence  of  \»hich  is  more  comprehensive,  and  composed  of  more 
elements  than  by  creatures  which  are  less  so." 


Adele. — "I  perceive  that  perfectly  now." 

Doctor. — "Therefore  we  may  conclude  that  the  species  of  those 
creatures  which  could  better  express  his  infinite  grandeur  and  attri- 
butes were  created  in  much  larger  number  than  those  which  could 
express  it  less." 

Adele. — "Granted ;  but  I  cannot  see  how  that  proves  that  in  the 
starry  worlds  there  must  be  intelligent  substances  incorporated  in  some 
sort  of  a  body." 

Doctor. — "It  does  perfectly.  Because  intellectual  substances 
united  to  a  body  such  as  man,  are  highest  in  the  scale  of  being  next 
to  the  purely  intellectual  substances.  Therefore  they  ought  to  be 
in  much  greater  number  than  the  species  below  them  in  the  scale; 
they  ought,  according  to  the  principle  laid  down,  be  more  numer- 
ous than  all  the  species  of  animals,  than  all  the  species  of  plants, 
than  all  the  inorganic  substances,  each  one  of  which  at  least  may  be 
considered  a  species,  though  some  natural  philosophers  maintain  that 
each  of  the  innumerable  atoms  forming  an  inorganic  body  is  a 
species  by  itself,  as  it  has  a  nature  and  form  of  its  own,  constant  and 
immutable.  (See  'Encyclopsedia  Britannica,'  art.  Atom.)  Now,  as  you 
are  aware,  there  is  one  species  of  intellectual  substances  united  to  a  body 
which  we  are  acquainted  with,  that  is,  the  human  species ;  therefore 
either  the  principle  is  false,  or  there  must  be  in  the  universe  innumer- 
able species  of  intellectual  substances,  incorporated  into  a  body,  to 
make  true  the  cosmological  law." 

Adele. — "But  are  the  principle  and  law  so  certain  as  all  that?" 

Doctor. — "It  is  absolutely  certain,  according  to  St.  Thomas' 
philosophy,  and  the  proof  is  capable  of  further  development 
than  we  have  hitherto  given  to  it.  Why,  we  may  inquire,  did  God 
Almighty  create  a  number  of  species  at  all,  and  was  not  content  with 
creating  one  single  species  ?  What  is  the  reason  ?  The  reason  is  to 
be  found  in  the  immense  distance  which  must  necessarily  exist  be- 
tween an  infinite,  immense  ideal  type  and  pattern  and  the  necessary 
finite  nature  of  its  copy,  expression  and  imitation.  God's  infinite 
essence  is  the  pattern  and  type  of  the  universe.  The  latter  must  nec- 
essarily be  limited  and  finite,  because  a  created  infinite  is  a  contradic- 
tion in  terms.  How,  then,  can  a  finite  being  express  and  set  forth  aa 
infinite  model?  The  diflBculty  i"?  somewhat  obviated  by  creating  an 
almost  infinite  number  of  species  of  creatures,  each  one  endeavoring 
to  reproduce  a  side — so  to  speak — of  the  infinite  type.  Imagine  an 
infinite  circle  in  which  we  could  suppose  an  infinite  number  oi  con- 
centric circles,  beginning  from  the  centre  and  gradually  reaching  the 
circumference.  The  circle  being  supposed  infinite  could  not  be  re- 
produced or  imitated  by  a  corresponding  finite  circle.  'But  we  could 
imagine  the  existence  of  an  almost  infinite  number  of  finite  circles. 


each  endeavoring  to  represent  one  of  the  concentric  circle  of  the  infi- 
nite figure.  Thue,  if  wo  should  not  have  an  absolutely  perfect  imita- 
tion of  that  circle,  we  would  at  least  have  an  imitation  which  some- 
what expresses  and  reproduces  it.  God's  essence  is  infinite  perfection. 
Xo  single  created  perfection  can  reproduce  or  imitate  it.  But  a 
bound)e-8  almost  infinite  species  of  creatures  could  somewhat 
represent  it  by  each  species  imitating  a  side,  a  moment, 
an  element  of  that  infinite  perfection.  And  is  it  not  evident 
that  of  the  species  created  purposely  to  represent  Fuch  elements, 
those  intended  to  reproduce  the  higher  and  more  comprehensive  ele- 
ment would  be  greater  in  number,  as  the  element  to  be  represented 
would  be  more  fecund.  The  principle,  then,  cannot  be  gainsaid. 
And  see  how  beautifully  in  the  hypothesis  of  the  i)lurality  of  worlds, 
the  exigency  of  the  principle  is  satisfied  and  the  law  carried  out  to  its 
utmost.  First,  inorganic  species — they  represent  mere  existence  and 
form.  Next,  the  organic  species,  in  much  greater  number,  as  repre- 
senting life  and  movement.  Then  sensitive  epecies,  the  greater  num- 
ber yet,  because  approaching  knowledge  and  consciousnesf.  Then, 
intellectual  substances  united  to  a  body  in  much  greater  and  bound- 
less number,  as  representing  the  true  nature  of  the  type,  the  spiritual 
substance  and  the  intellect ;  and,  finally,  as  we  know  from  Eevelation 
and  can  surmise  from  reason,  the  existence  of  myriads  and  tens  of 
thousands  of  myriads  of  millions  of  angels,  each  one,  according  to  St. 
Thomas,  the  angelic  doctor,  a  species  by  himself.  How  beautifully 
at  d  how  charmingly  is  the  principle  carried  out  and  the  law  kept  in 
the  hypothesis  we  are  maintaining  !' 

Adele. — "It  is  beautiful,  indeed,  and  I  feel  my  mind  and  heart 
glowing  with  admiration  and  delight!" 

Doctor. — "But  there  is  another  cosmological  law  which  goes  tr, 
prove  the  same  thing.  This  is  called  the  law  of  proportion  and  aflBnity, 
which  is  to  be  found  governing  the  difierent  creatures  or  species  of  the 
universe." 

George. — '  I  partly  guess  what  you  mean,  doctor,  bdt  I  would  like 
to  hear  it  fully  explained." 

Doctor.— 'We  have  to  follow  up  the  train  of  thought  which  has 
occupied  us  tiil  now  to  understand  that  law.  We  have  said  that  God's 
wisdom  is  obliged  to  create  a  variety  of  soecies  in  order  to  express  the 
immensity  anl  infinity  of  his  nature  and  attributes.  As  a  painter 
who  has  a  vast  design  in  his  mind  cannot  reproduce  it  on  canvas  with- 
out a  variety  of  objects  and  colors,  likewise  God  cannot  express  the 
unutterable  magnitude  of  His  grandeur  without  a  variety  of  creatures. 
Very  well;  but  a  variety  of  creatures  or  species  or  kingdoms,  as  we 
'nay  call  them,  each  one,  so  to  speak,  reproducing  a  side  of  that  im- 
jnenae  grandeur,  must  needs  be  reduced  to  unity ;  because  the  type 


224 

and  model  which  they  must  express  is  not  a  conglomeration  or  issort- 
ment  of  different  aspects,  but  an  infinite  nature  eminently  one  aud 
simple.  That  variety  must,  then,  be  brought  into  unity.  How  can 
that  be  obtained  ?  One  of  the  laws  which  paves  the  way  to  that  unity 
in  the  species  ( f  creation  is  that  of  afiBnity  or  proportion,  that  is  to  say, 
that,  though  the  species  are  manifold  and  different,  the  extremes  of 
each  species  must  be  softened  down  so  as  to  gradually  and  insensibly 
diminish  the  variety  and  contrast  between  themaud  make  way  for  the 
unity." 

Adele.— "I  think  I  catch  the  idea,  but  an  example  will  make  it 
clear  to  my  mind." 

Doctor.— "Take  the  species  of  the  universe,  such  as  they 
appear  to  us,  and  you  will  apprehend  the  law.  The  first  king- 
dom which  appears  to  us  is  the  inorganic;  the  one  above  is 
the  organic;  the  movement  in  the  first  oiiginates  in  an  ex- 
ternal agent;  in  the  latter,  the  movement  is  interior  and  spon- 
taneous; the  contrast  is  too  great  between  those  kingdoms  or  species. 
How  to  soften  it  down  ?  By  the  creation  of  some  species  which  acts 
like  a  link  between  them,  or  rather  which  serves  as  a  shading  down 
the  extremes  of  each  ;  this  we  find  in  the  family  of  fungi  or  mushroom, 
ihe  nature  of  which  has  not  been  ascertained,  scientists  being  um  er- 
tain  whether  to  classify  it  among  the  inorganic  or  the  organic.  .Again  : 
take  the  organic  or  living  world  and  the  sensible;  there  is  certainly  a 
hiatus,  a  gulf  between  them,  too  far  apart  to  be  crossed  over,  there 
being  between  pijre  internal  movement  and  sensation  an  immense 
difference.  The  g'-eat  and  wise  Creator  has  softened  down  the  ex 
tremes  of  each  by  placing  between  them  the  species  polypus,  sponge, 
coral,  which  act  as  mediators  between  the  purely  organic  kingdom 
and  the  sensitive.  Scientists,  again,  cannot  determine  whether  those 
families  are  plants  or  animals.  Now,  go  a  little  further,  between  a 
sensitive  being  and  a  spiritual  nature  there  is  an  immense  difference. 
To  soften  down  that  contrast  God  has  made  man,  who  is  the 
link  between  pure  sensitive  beings  and  a  spiritual  substance. 
That  is,  the  law  of  affinity  or  proportion  which  obtains  in  the  uni 
verse,  and  must  also  obtain  in  every  work  of  art  composed  of  different 
and  varied  elements.  If  a  musician  were  to  produce  a  composition 
made  up  of  diSerent  parts,  one  succeeding  the  other,  he  would  pro- 
duce something  jarring  on,  and  distressing  to,  our  ear,  something  dis- 
connected, a  number  of  parts  having  nothing  at  all  to  do  with  each 
other,  in  fact  no  parts  at  all ;  because  a  part  to  be  such  must  be  pro- 
portionate and  subject  to  the  whole." 

George.— "Well,  that  law  is  certainly  true  and  necessary,  but  I 
cannot  pee  how  it  proves  the  existence  of  spiritual  substances  united 
to  a  body  in  the  starry  heavens?"' 


Doctor.— "One  moment,  yet,  and  you  will  see  it.  The  world  next 
to  man's  is  the  angeli  5.  This  we  know  for  certain,  from  Revelation. 
But,  as  I  have  already  intimated,  reason  eunuises  it.  Now,  a  com- 
parison between  the  intellect  of  the  lowest  angel  and  the  highest 
human  genius  will  solve  ihe  difficulty.  Do  you  know,  George,  what 
is  the  real  diflerence  between  these  great  men  we  cail  geniuses  and 
common  intellects  ? ' 

George. — "That  is  rather  a  ditBcult  question  to  answer  " 

Adele.— 'I  think  I  can  see  the  diflerence,  but  1  have  never  ex- 
plicitly accounted  fur  it." 

Doctor.— "The  following  qualities  accompany  the  intellect  of  the 
genius:  It  is  sublime,  it  is  vast  and  comprehensive,  it  is  penetrating 
and  profound,  but,  above  all,  it  is  more  or  less  intuitive  with  the 
rapidity  of  lightning.  It  is  sublime.  There  are,  in  tvery  science, 
truths  and  principles  intrinsically  high,  such,  for  instance,  as  the  in- 
finitesimal Calculus  in  mathematics,  the  laws  determining  the  difTer- 
ent  orbits  of  the  planets  in  astromony,  etc.  The  discovery  (f  such 
truths  is  above  the  reach  of  common  intellects,  and  such  truths  are. 
with  difficulty,  apprehended  by  such,  after  being  discovered.  Butjurit 
such  truths  form  the  natural  atmosphere  of  the  genius;  it  lives,  it 
breaths,  it  revels  in  them.  They  are  its  natural  horizon.  It  is  vast 
and  comprehensive;  it  can  perceive  and  apprehend  a  truth  in  all  its 
magnitude  and  proportions.  It  is  penetrating  and  profound.  The 
glance  of  the  genius  searches,  scrutinizes,  digs,  burrows,  till 
it  has  seen  the  truth  to  its  very  depth,  and  sounded  it  to  its 
very  bottom.  But,  above  all,  it  is  intuitive.  What  men, 
endowed  with  fair  parts,  can  see  painfully  and  slowly,  and,  as  it 
were,  piecemeal,  part  after  part,  and  after  a  long,  difficult  and  hard  rea- 
soning, the  genius  sees  at  a  glance  and  discovers  its  remotest  conse- 
quences. Analogies,  relations  of  things,  very  faint  and  imperceptible 
to  other  minds,  are  inspiration  to  him.  It  seems  endowed  with  vision 
and  divination.  Finally,  it  is  tenacious,  itapprehends  with  a  force,  an 
energy,  a  grasp  which  nothing  can  surpass,  and  follows  it  up  with  ;i 
belief,  a  confidence,  a  trust,  a  resolution  so  strong,  so  firm,  so  unshaken 
as  to  cause  miracles.  Take  an  example— Napoleon  the  Great.  It  is 
on  the  field  of  battle— one  of  those  pitched  battles,  in  which  tens  of 
thousaifds  are  engaged  on  every  side,  is  going  on.  The  day  seems  to 
be  going  against  the  French.  Napoleon,  from  an  eminence,  with  an 
eyeglass,  is  surveying  the  whole  field,  remaining  immovable  and  im- 
passible. When  all  at  once  a  thought  fltitshes  upon  hie  mind.  It 
electrifies  him.  He  gives  a  few  orders  to  his  stafi";  they  rush  to  com- 
municate his  commands;  the  orders  are  canied  out,  the  battle  is 
decided  in  favor  of  the  great  captain.  In  that  thought,  with  the 
rapidity  of  lightning,  he  has  seen  all  the  movements  of  the  enemy, 


2^6 

gues-ied  his  intpiiiiuas  nnd  his  designs,  has  penetrated  the  whole  plan 
of  battle,  has  discovered  its  defects,  has  perceived  the  simplest  and 
most  energetic  means  to  defeat  that  plan,  and  turn  its  defect  in  his 
favor — has  given  his  orders  with  the  clearneso  and  energy ;  they  are 
executed,  the  thing  is  done.    There  is  the  genius." 

George. — "Excellently  ex  plained,  doctor." 

Doctor. — "Well,  I  want  you  to  understand  that  one  of  these 
great  geniuses,  who  must  have  had  the  consciousness  of  the  immense 
loftiness  and  power  of  his  intellect,  has  asserted,  and  his  assertion  may 
well  be  taken  for  granted,  that  between  the  intellect  of  the  highest 
and  loftiest  human  geniue,  and  the  intellect  of  the  first  angel  next  to 
ua,  there  is  an  immense  difference,  as  great  and  vast  a  difference  as  that 
which  exists  between  the  highest  human  intellect  and  that  of  a  clown- 
ish- dull,  uneducated  peasant." 

Adele. — "Who  said  that,  uncle  ?" 

Doctor, — St.  Thomas.  He  hesitated  not  to  assert  that  the 
difference  between  the  highest  human  genius  and  the  angei  next  to 
us  is  as  great  as  that  between  the  highest  genius  and  a  poor  ignorant 
peasant.  If  we  had  time  to  study  the  nature  and  properties  of  angels, 
you  would  soon  see  that  the  statement  is  by  no  means  exagi^erated." 

George. — "Well,  doctor,  what  do  you  conclude  from  ti;:it  state- 
ment ?" 

Doctor. — "I  infer  that  there  is  too  great  a  contrast  between  man 
and  the  angels,  that  the  difierence  is  too  great,  too  deep,  too  vast,  too 
discordant,  so  to  speak  ;  that  it  should,  according  to  the  law  of  affinity 
and  proportion,  be  smoothed,  softened  down,  that  the  extrertirs  ought 
to  be  eomcwhat  approached  and  brought  together.  And  this  can  only 
be  done  by  tilling  the  starry  heavens  with  spiritual  substances  attached 
to  a  body,  the  intellect  of  which  substances,  whilst  surpassing  that  of 
the  highest  genius,  may  approach  nearer  and  nearer  that  of  the 
angel,  and  thus  to  keep  the  harmony  of  the  creation  and  the  unity  of 
the  universe." 

Adele. — "I  see  now  the  whole  drift  of  our  argument,  and  I  can 
perceive  the  whole  universe,  as  it  were,  at  a  glance.  It  seems  to  rise 
up  before  my  mind  in  the  huge  proportions  of  an  immense  pyramid, 
with  the  special  circumstance  that  this,  in  opposition  to  all  other 
pyramids,  begins  with  a  narrow  base  and  enlarges  as  it  rises  up  to  the 
summit.  I  see  at  its  base  the  immense  world  of  inorganic  matter, 
and  next,  the  still  vaster  kingdom  of  organic  matter,  but  between  them 
some  species  which  softers  the  two  extremes.  Higher  up  I  see  the 
whole  animal  world  composed  of  numberless  species,  one  more  per- 
fect than  the  other;  then  next,  far  up.  I  see  a  gleam  of  the  spiritual 
substances,  but  between  them  I  admire  the  existence  of  the  mediator 
between  the  animal  and  the  intelligent  substance— man.    Between 


man  and  the  purely  intellectual  being,  I  perceive  now  an  immenee 
number  and  variety  of  intelligent  substances  scattered  all  over  the 
starry  beavens  in  the  colossal  worlds,  floating  in  space  in  the  far  dis 
tant  depths,  substances  united  to  a  kind  of  material  body,  one  species 
higher  than  another,  and  the  next  higher  and  much  higher,  till  we 
almost  grasp  the  summit  occupied  in  boundles?,  immenee,  colossal 
proportions,  by  purely  intellectual  substance,  one  loftier,  more  ex- 
alted, more  sublime,  more  soaring  than  the  other,  till  we  penetrate  tc 
the  very  highest  and  sublimest,  which  almost  reaches  the  throne  of 
the  Infinite,  but  yet  an  infinite  and  insurmountable  distance.  Oh. 
how  grand  is  God's  work!"' 


TlilRTV  FOURTH  ARTICLE. 

THE     PLURALITY     OF     WORLDS     IN*     HARMONY    WITH     CHRISTIAN     REVE- 
LATION. 

Adele. — "The  opinion,  the  probability  (if  which  we  have  en- 
deavored to  demonstrate,  has  moved  to  the  very  depth  all  the  instincts 
of  my  poetical  nature.  The  harmonies  of  song  and  praises  to  the 
great  Creator  of  all  things,  raised  upon  all  the  points  of  space  from 
myriads  of  intellectual  creatures,  seem  to  linger  on  my  ear  and  fill  my 
heart  with  transport  and  enthusiasm.  There  is  a  philosophy  of  the 
heart  as  well  as  a  philosophy  of  the  mind,  and  the  former  fully  con- 
vinces me  that  that  opinion  is  true.  I  am  only  waiting  far  the  proof 
how  that  opinion  in  no  way  contravenes  any  tenet  of  Catholic  faith, 
and  I  will  cling  to  it  with  all  my  heart." 

George. — "I  will  follow  you." 

Doctor. — "Let  us  examine,  then,  the  perfect  accord  of  that  opinion 
with  the  Christian  Revelation.  And,  to  be  brief,  I  may  as  well  say 
that  the  only  dogma  with  which  that  opinion  musf.  be  proved  to  ac- 
cord is  the  mystery  of  the  Incarnation  and  Redemption.  George,  do 
you  know  of  anything  which  seems  to  be  j  irring  against  the  mystery 
of  the  Incarnation  in  the  plurality  of  worlds?" 

George  — "I  do.  In  the  first  place,  wo  have  said  that,  supposing 
thatopiniontobetrue,  we  may  admit  the  existence  of  numberless  intel- 
lectual substances,  loftier  and  more  sublime  than  man's  intellect.  Now, 
it  seems  to  me  that  if  the  Son  of  God  was  to  take  up  a  soul  and  a  body 
and  unite  both  to  His  infinite  Person,  it  would  have  been  more  befit- 
ting that  He  should  take  them  from  among  the  myriads  of  those  noble 
productions  existing  in  the  starry  heavens  than  to  f  elect  a  human  eouJ 
and  body." 

Doctor.— "Why  ?  ' 


22i 

George. — "I  don't  know  exactly  why  ;  but,  it  appears  to  me,  that 
He  should  choose  among  the  best,  and  the  noblest." 

Adele. — "In  that  case  He^  should  have  been  united  to  the  best 
aagelic  spirit." 

Doctor. — "There  is  some  truth  about  Adele's  remark ;  but  we  will 
notice  it  by  and  by.  Your  remark,  George,  proceeds  from  a  want  of 
due  consideration  and  reflection.  Let  us,  for  a  moment,  suppose  it  to 
be  true;  let  us  admit  that  the  Son  of  God,  willing  to  unite  to 
Himself  a  created  nature  in  the  unity  of  this  Divine  Person,  were  ob- 
liged, by  reason  of  fitness,  to  choose  the  very  best  that  could  be  pro- 
duced, we  may  inquire  further  is  there  such  a  thing  as  a  creature,  the 
very  best  which  can  be  created  ?  Id  such  a  thing  possible?  On  re- 
flecting upon  the  question  you  will  find  that  such  a  thing,a8a  creature 
the  very  best  possible,  is  an  impossibility." 

Adele. — "Why,  I  cannot  see  the  reason." 

George. — "Nor  I." 

Doctor. — "It  is  easily  explained.  Allow,  for  a  moment,  the  possi- 
bility of  producing  a  creature,  the  very  best ;  after  all,  it  would  only  be 
a  finite  being." 

George.— "Certainly ;  otherwise,  how  could  it  be  a  creature  ?" 

Doctor. — "And  can  you  put  a  limit  to  the  perfecting  of  a  finite 
being  ?" 

George. — "By  no  means;  though,  the  creature  being  finite,  can 
neverieach  the  infinite,  yet  it  ia  capable  of  an  indefinite,  unceasing, 
interminable  bettering  and  progress.  The  creature  or  the  finite  is 
like  number.  Though  number  can  never  reach  the  infinite,  yet  it  is 
always  capable  of  further  addition,  and  there  is  no  tumber  to  which 
we  cannot  add  another  unit  and  make  it  greater  than  the  preceding 
one." 

Doctor. — "Your  reasoning  is  perfect,  George  ;  but  it  only  proves 
you  with  mathematical  evidence  how  the  best  creature  possible  is  an 
impossibiWty  and  a  contradiction.  After  we  have  imagined,  in  the 
highest  flight  of  fancy,  a  creature  gifted  with  the  highest  perfections 
and  endowments,  we  could  always  imagine  a  better  one." 

Adele. — "Well,  gentlemen,  and  what  do  you  infer  from  this  beau- 
tiful reasoning?'' 

Doctor. — "That  George's  assertion  that  it  was  befitting  that  the 
Son  of  God,  wishing  to  unite  to  Himself  a  created  nature,  should 
choose  the  best  and  the  noblest^  proves  too  much,  and  therefore  proves 
nothing  at  all.  A  creature,  the  best  possible,  is  not  eupposible,  as  it 
cannot  be  produced.  Therefore,  the  Son  of  God,  in  wishing  to  unite 
Himself  to  a  created  nature,  was  perfectly  free  to  choose  whatoaever 
nature  He  pleased." 

George  — "I  perceive  it  now." 


22i) 

Doctor.— "The  Son  of  God  was  not  bound  to  choose  the  beet,  and 
could  select  any  created  nature  Jle  pleased.  The  only  reasons  of  fit- 
ness which  we  can  discover  in  the  mystery  of  the  Incarnation  must 
be  determined  and  drawn  from  the  end  which  He  freely  proposed  to 
Himself  in  wanting  to  assume  a  created  nature  to  the  dignity  of  a  per- 
sonal union  with  Him.  Jf  we  inveitigafe  and  find  out  what  object 
God  had  in  view,  in  at-sumirg  a  ireattd  nature,  we  shall  see  the  fitness 
uf  every  detail  and  particular  of  that  mystery." 

Adele. — "I  see  perfectly.  God  beirg  necessarily  free  to  select  any 
cieated  nature  to  the  unutterable  dignity  of  a  personal  union  with 
Him,  it  follows,  as  a  necessary  consequence,  that  the  only  way  to 
know  and  to  admire  the  nature,  qualitict=,  details,  particulars  of  that 
mystery,  is  to  inquire  what  was  the  object  He  bad  in  view  in  assuming 
a  created  nature.  It  id  ocly  after  having  ascertained  that  object  that 
we  can  study  the  fitness,  seemliness  and  appronriateness  of  everything 
connected  with  it." 

Doctor. — "Bravo,  Adele.    You  have  a  very  quick  perception." 

George. — "Let  uh,  then,  with  all  proper  respect  and  reverence,  in- 
vestigate the  end  fi  r  which  the  Son  of  God  determined  to  unite  to 
Himself  a  created  nature." 

Doctor — "The  end  is  one,  and  yet  manifold.  First,  it  was  to 
raise,  to  elevate,  to  exalt  the  whole  univerde  in  all  its  component 
species  to  a  dignity  actually  infinite,  and  thus  to  solve  the  problem  of 
creation.  You  need  not  start,  Adele  ;  I  am  going  to  explain.  In  our 
last  conversation  we  said  that  God,  to  express  His  infinite  nature  and 
perfections  was  obliged  to  create  a  variety  of  species  differing  from 
each  o'.her,  and  yet  all  conspiring  to  exhibit  it  perfect  whole  by  being 
moulded  into  unity  by  the  laws  of  rtliriity  and  connection.  The 
variety  expressed  the  immense  proportions  and  vastness  of  the-type, 
the  unity,  the  oneness,  and  simplicity  of  the  same.  The  other  laws 
fitted  part  into  part,  and  made  all  conspire  to  exhibit  a  harmonious 
whole  But  say  what  you  will,  the  copy  beautiful,  magnificent,  sub- 
lime, lofty,  wondrt)us,  as  it  may  be  of  the  infinite  type,  is  only  :i  finite 
t-ketch,  faint  picture,  a  distant  reproduction,  a  shadowy  portrait  of 
that  model.  Still  that  copy  could  never  be  infinite  in  its  nature  and 
substance,  otherwise  it  would  no  longer  be  a  creature.  What  does  tbe 
iutinit*^  wisdom  of  God  devise,  and  His  infinite  condescension  and 
goodness  effect?  The  copy  cannot  be  infinite  in  its  essence  and  sub- 
stance, said  God's  wisdom.  Well,  let  it  be  infinite  by  a  personal  union 
with  the  type.  Therefore  was  the  union  of  the  Son  of  God  with  a 
created  nature  decreed.  But  what  created  nature  shall  be  chosen? 
What  is  the  obj'^ct  to  be  attained  ?  The  divinization  of  the  universe. 
Therefore  a  nature  shall  be  chosen  which  recapitulates  all  the  species 
of  the  universe;  that  is,  a  nature  consisting  of  a  s{-.iritua1  substance 


230 

united  to  a  material  body — the  human  nature  which  abridges  in  itself 
all  created  specie?,  as  it  partakes  of  existence  with  inorganic  beings,  of 
life  with  the  organic,  of  sensation  with  the  animals,  and  is  a  spiritual 
pubstance  like  the  angels.  Hence,  you  see,  Adele,  why  the  So  a  of 
God  could  not  have  united  to  Himself  the  angelic  nature.  He  would, 
by  doing  so,  have  excluded  from  the  univf  rsal  exaltation  all  creatures 
and  species  inferior  to  ppiritual  subs'ances.  We  have  seen,  already, 
that  He  was  not  bound  to  assume  the  best  and  the  noblest  spiritual 
substance  united  to  a  body.  Therefore,  you  see,  that  by  assuming 
human  nature,  He  has  ennobled  and  divinized  all  the  species  cf  the 
univerc^e,  inorganic  species,  living  species,  sensitive  species,  spiritual 
substances  of  any  degree,  united  to  any  kind  of  material  body,  a^d 
pure  intellectual  substances  like  the  angels." 
Adele. — "That  is  grand  and  sublime!" 

Doctor. — "But  mark  wherein  the  best  and  loftiest  of  the  aim  in 
this  aniversal  divinization  is  'o  be  found.  I  have  already  alluded  to  it, 
but  it  is  well  to  put  it  in  stronger  and  bolder  relief.  It  was  in  order 
that  God  might  be  manifested,  known,  esteemed,  honored,  praised, 
glorified,  loved  by  His  creation  with  a  knowledge,  esteem,  honor,  love, 
fully  and  in  every  way  adequate  to  Hia  desert.  An  infinite  intellect 
and  an  infinite  will  iu  the  j^erson  of  the  Word  of  God  .ire  united  by 
a  personal  bond  to  human  nature  the  recapitulation  of  the  universe. 
The  whole  universe,  then,  as  it  were,  is  illumined  by  an  infinite  intel- 
lect, governed  and  swayed  by  an  infinite  will;  it  throbs  with  the 
throbs  of  an  infinite  heart,  and  knows, and  acknowledges,  and  esteems, 
and  loves  and  praises,  and  worships  its  Creator  with  an  infinite  ac- 
knowledgment, love  and  subjection.  That  is  the  aim  of  the  Incarna- 
tion. All  that  was  realized  by  the  Son  of  God  becoming  man.  That 
is  the  whole  Christian  system  and  religion  in  a  nutshell." 

George, — "Dear  me,  I  ntvfr  knew  my  religion  before  this." 
Adele. — "Nor  I.    Would  to  God  that  all  men  could  understand  it. 
Who  could  resist  such  grandetir,  such  loftiness  and  such  wondrous 
beauty  and  ^veliness !" 

Doctor, — "Mark  well,  the  union  of  the  Son  of  God  terminated  in 
the  human  nature,  not  in  any  human  personality.  Hence,  the  uni- 
verse in  Christ  has  been  elevated  and  divinized  as  to  its  species,  inas- 
much as  they  are  represented  by  the  human  nature  which  was  as- 
sumed. But  how  to  raise  the  universe  as  to  the  personalities  com- 
posing it?  All  individual  persons,  in- order  to  partake  in  a  certain 
degree  of  that  sublimation  and  divinization  are  called  upon  to  enter 
in  personal  communication  and  contact  with  Christ.  This  union, 
though  real  and  most  intimate,  of  course,  is  not  the  same  as  that  ex- 
isting between  the  human  nature  and  the  Word  of  God,  because  in 
the  latter  case  the  human   ^^^ture  subsists  of  ♦^he  personality  of  the 


231 

Word  and  does  not  possess  human  personality  whereas,  in  the  case 
of  individual  perHons  being  united  to  Christ,  thid  uuiuu  must  keep 
intact  the  personality  of  both  terms  united.  Clirist's  personality  and 
createi!  prreonalities  nrp  to  remain  the  same  after  the  union.  Hence 
the  iitiinn  we  speak  of  between  Him  and  creite<i  personalities  is 
brought  :ibout  by  that  g'cat  and  supernatural  foree  and  agent  called 
grace,  which  unites  the  created  personalities  to  God  in  a  most  intimate 
manner,  but  leaves  that  personality  whole  and  intact.  Ihus  are 
created  personalities  enabled  not  only  so  as  to  exhibit  one  universe 
exalted  and  elevated  in  nature  and  persons,  but  shall  attain  also  their 
own  iudividnal  destiny  and  happiness.  When  Christ  was  on  earth 
He  associated  to  Him:?elf  certain  persons  whom  He  called  Apos- 
tles, or  messengers,  and  made  them  tho  living  instruments 
for  the  realization  of  this  union  of  created  persons  with 
Christ.  This  they  have  done  and  will  do  to  the  end  of  time  by 
themselves  and  their  successors.  This  grand  and  sublime  living 
organism,  which  is  to  traverse  centuries  and  generations  to  bring  all 
creatf  d  persons  in  union  with  Christ,  is  nothing  less  than  Christ  living 
in  the  Apostles,  and  through  them  bringing  generation  after  genera- 
tion into  this  grand  union  with  Himi^elf.  Here  we  have,  then,  the 
whole  universe  in  its  ppecies  ex^ilted  in  Christ  and  through  Christ, 
raised  to  the  summit  of  divinizition ;  in  its  personalities  called  to 
come  in  contact  with  Christ,  to  personally  partake  of  that  sublimation. 
This  was  the  plan  of  the  Creator  in  order  to  m;jko  His  works  worthy 
of  Him.  Ouce  this  plan  made  and  executed,  no  created  personalites, 
be  they  augels,  men,  or  inhabitants  of  the  starry  depths,  can  attain 
their  end,  except  through  this  universe  with  Chrisf,  the  Sublimator 
of  the  universe." 

George.— "Why?" 

Doctor.— "Because  the  end  of  t very  individual  personality  must 
be  subject  to  and  moulded  afier  the  end  of  the  universe.  This  is 
attained  by  a  personal  union  with  the  Word  of  GoJ,  the  second  Person 
of  the  ever  Blessed  Trinity;  therefore,  every  individual  person  mudt 
be  joined  to  this  union  with  Christ.  Moreover,  the  nature  of  every 
personality  of  the  universe,  as  represented  in  the  human  nature  of 
Christ,  is  already  in  personal  communication  with  Hitn.  It  would 
mar  the  whole  plan  ;  it  would  be  incongruous  if  the  personalities  of 
those  natuves  represented  were  not  to  be  brought  in  contact  with  the 
Sublimator.  We  men  are  already,  in  a  certain  sense,  connected  with 
Chris;,;  the  tie  of  a  common  nature  exists  already  between  us.  The  same 
may  be  said  of  all  other  personalities  of  the  universe.  It  is,  therefore, 
befitting  that  we  should  not  attain  our  own  individual  completion 
and  destiny,  except  in  and  through  that  union." 

Adde. — "Let  me  see  if  I  understand  the  whole  plan.     God,  in  Hir", 


232  - 

infinite  goodness,  Wanted  to  make  the  universe  au  infinite  expression 
of  Himself,  at  least  by  union.  His  divine  Word,  the  infinite  expres- 
sion of  his  grandeur,  came  to  reside  in  the  universe  by  uniting  to 
Himself  the  human  nature  in  the  bond  of  His  own  personality,  and 
thus  He  divinized  the  whole  universe,  inasmuch  as  human  nature 
represented  all  its  existing  species.  The  universe,  then,  was  divinized, 
but  only  in  its  specific  nature.  Individual  personalities  were  left  out. 
These  are  called  to  come  in  contact  and  communication  with  Christ, 
and  thus  are  enabled  to  partake  of  the  universal  sublimation.  With- 
out this  union  or  coutavt  with  Christ,  no  sublimation  for  created 
personalities,  no  attaining  of  their  ultimate  destiny  can  be  poEsible. 
The  means  of  briugii  g  all  personalities  into  this  union  is  Christ  Him- 
self, with  all  persoQS  already  associated  with  Him  traversing  centuries 
and  generations  ;  in  other  words,  the  Holy  Catholic  Church." 

George. — "Excellent,  Migs  Adelo.  Then,  doctor,  if  I  understand 
you  right,  if  thty  bj  inhabitants  in  the  stars  they  cannot  attain  their 
destiny  except  by  being  united  with  Curiat  ?'' 

Doctor. — "Certainly  not.  He  has  Himself  said:  'None  comes  to 
the  Father  but  by  Me'  (St.  John).  There  is  nu  exception  made,  none ; 
neither  angels  nor  men  nor  any  other  personality  can  attain  their 
destiny  except  in  and  through  Christ,  the  Mediator  and  Divinizer  of 
the  universe.  As  you  know,  in  the  case  of  us  men,  Christ  not  only 
raised  us,  but  in  consequence  of  the  fall  of  our  first  parents,  redeemed 
us  from  ein  and  all  its  consequence,  reconciled  us  with  God  by  payiug 
with  His  blood  and  His  life  the  ransom  of  our  redemption.  Of  course 
we  cannot  tell  how  the  case  stands  with  other  inhabitants  of  the 
heavens.  Whatever  may  be  their  condition,  the  following  truths 
must  be  held  about  them  :  First,  they,  like  all  other  created  person- 
alities, must  come  in  communion  with  Christ  in  order  to  ijarrake  <  f 
the  sublimation  of  the  whole  universe,  and  in  order  to  be  able  to  readi 
their  everlatting  destinj-.  There  is  no  exception  for  any  one.  Christ 
is  the  door ;  if  any  enters  through  it  he  shall  be  paved  ;  if  he  does  not, 
he  cannot  rea<:;h  his  destiny ;  he  is  a  member  out  of  joint,  t-eparate, 
astray,  forsaken,  and  forming  no  part  of  the  sublime  harmony  of  the 
universe.  Vae  soli  !  Second,  those  inhabitants  of  the  s'ars,  nne  may 
easily  surmise,  were  created  by  God  and  raised  like  our  first  parents 
to  a  personal  union  with  Him,  in  view  and  for  the  sake  of  Christ,  and 
their  truth  and  fidelity  put  to  a  test  and  trial.  Now,  we  may  make  a 
twofold  supposition.  They  fell,  or  they  stood  the  trial  bravely  and 
unscathed.  If  they  stood,  it  was  through  the  grace  of  Chri-it ;  if  thev 
fell,  they  needed  redemption,  like  us,  and  when  Christ  died  I'ud  paid 
the  ransom  of  our  redemption.  He  included  them  also  in  that  ransom, 
the  value  of  which  was  infinite  and  capable  of  redeeming  innumerable 
worlds." 


23;i 

Adele. — "I  uiKierstand  all  that  very  wt  11.  But  when  an  ow  did 
those  iuhabitante  of  the  heavens  come  to  know  Chriat  and  to  enter 
into  union  with  Him  ?" 

Doctor. — '  Of  course,  we  cannot  determine  that.  Christ,  after  His 
ascension,  may  Himself  have  brought  the  knowledge  of  Himself,  and 
His  Church  to  them,  or  He  may  have  used  any  of  the  numberless 
means  at  His  disposal  to  call  them  into  union  with  Him  and  His 
Church.  What  is  absolutely  certain  is,  that  if  there  be  intelligent 
inhabitants  in  those  worlds  we  arc  speaking  of  they  were,  like  all 
thingf=,  made  for  Christ  and  after  Christ  and  in  view  of  Christ  ;  that 
they,  in  order  to  attain  their  ultimate  destiny,  must  come  in  super 
natural  union  with  Christ;  that  if  they  enjoyed,  like  man,  this  union 
in  anticipation  before  Christ  '.ctually  appeared  on  this  earth  and  were 
faithful  tc  it  they  owe  this  constancy  and  fidelity  to  the  grace  of 
Christ.  If  they  fell,  they  were  included  in  our  redemption,  and  were 
made  partakers  of  tliis  redemption  and  restored  to  the  grace  and 
friendship  of  God  by  Christ  through  any  means  which  in  His  infinite 
wisdom  He  may  have  seen  fit  to  adopt." 

Adele. — "It  is  grand  ;  it  is  wondrously  enchanting.  The  whole 
universe  in  everyone  of  its  natures  is  united  to  Christ  the  Mediator 
and  thus  it  is  raised  to  an  infinite  dignity  and  worth,  and  can  fittingly 
and  adequately  represent  its  Creator.  All  created  personalities, 
angels,  men,  inhabitants  of  the  starry  heavens  are  all  called,  to  be 
united  to  the  Mediator,  and  in  Him  and  through  Him,  not  only  per- 
fect the  sublimation  of  the  universe,  but  attain  their  own  individual, 
fternal  destiny,  Truly  through  Christ  and  in  Christ  all  created 
per.'^onalities  from  every  point  of  heaven  where  angels  dwell,  from 
every  spot  of  the  infinite  worlds  stretching  in  space,  from  our  own 
little  Insignificant  speck,  can  sing  to  their  Creator  a  canticle  of 
praise,  of  adoration,  of  exultation,  of  delight,  of  complacency,  of 
thanksgiving,  of  glory,  fully  and  in  every  way  adequate  and  befitting 
Hia  infinite  and  immense  grandeur,  because  they  sing  it  in  Christ, 
and  through  Christ  their  truth,  way  and  life,  and  God  cannot  but  be 
pleased  with  them.  No  words  can  fully  express  the  sublimity  and 
loftiness  of  such  thoughts,  we  may  as  well  bo  hushed  and  contem- 
plate in  unutterable  silence  such  works.  They  brook  no  human  utter- 
ance; but  in  the  stillness  of  our  soul  we  can  feel  the  more  keenly 
and  more  exquisitely  their  harmonies  and  divine  music. 


THIRTY  FIFTH  ARTICLE. 

WHAT    IS    A  MIRACLE? 

Doctor. — '-We  have  hitherto  compared  the   truths  of  Revelation 
with  nearly  all  natural    Fciences,  with   geology,  history,  paleontology 


234 

biology,  astronomy,  and  so  forth,  and  we  have  invariably  discovered 
that  DO  conflict  of  any  kind  exists  between  those  truths  and  the  real 
facts  and  results  of  all  those  different  sciences.  We  have  to  approach 
now  another  science,  and  compare  its  real  results  and  laws  with  cer- 
tain facts  and  state'nents  of  Revelation,  with  a  view  of  studying 
whether  any  conflict  exists  between  them.  This  science  is  physics,  or 
natural  philosophy." 

Adele. — "And  what  are  the  statements  and  facis  of  Revelation 
which  appear  to  conflict  with  natural  philosophy  ?  ' 

Doctor. — "Miracles,  those  supernatural  facts  which  have  been 
hunted  down — by  modern  ecientists  especially— with  an  animus,  a 
hatred,  a  rage,  anything  but  honorable  either  to  their  intellect  or  in- 
dicative of  that  honesty,  calmness,  sincerity  and  impartiality,  which 
one  should  naturally  expect  from  a  class  who  monopolize  the  good 
name  of  scientists." 

George. — "I  am  glad  we  have  come  to  this  part  of  our  discussion. 
I  expect  to  have  my  notions  and  ideas  set  right  and  elucidated." 

Doctor. — "I  intend  to  discuss  this  question  quite  at  some  length 
in  order  to  satisfy  every  possible  objectiun  which  has  been  raised 
against  miracles,  and  to  put  the  subject  in  such  clear,  bold,  unmis- 
takable light  as  to  leave  no  pretext  or  loophole  against  it." 

Adele. — "Wliat  will  be  the  first  and  principal  questions  connected 
with  the  subject  ?"' 

Doctor. — "In  the  first  place  we  must  inquire  into  the  real  idea  of 
miracles;  in  other  words,  what  does  Revelation  naean  by  a  miracle? 
George,  what  do  you  understand  by  a  miracle  ?  ' 

George. — "I  can  ensily  give  the  general  and  etymological  signifi- 
cation of  the  word  miracle;  but  I  am  not  quite  sure  that  I  can  go 
much  farther." 

Adele. — "Let  us  hear." 

George. — "The  word  miracle  in  its  most  general  acceptation  and 
meaning  signifies  something  which  surprises  and  astonishes,  from  the 
Latin  mi'^aculum,  something  to  be  startled  at,  which  excites  wonder 
and  admiration.  Th'"'  wonder  may  be  caused  either  by  the  grandeur 
and  proportions  of  the  phenomenon  itself,  or  be  produced  by  the 
rarity  of  its  apparition." 

Doctor. — "Very  good,  George;  and  in  common  language,  anything 
which  implies  the  presence  of  a  great  force  or  ability  takes  the  name 
of  magnificent  and  wonderful.  Hence  we  hear  of  the  miracles  of 
genius,  the  miracles  of  industry,  the  miracles  of  arts,  the  miracles  of 
eloquence,  the  triiracle.s  of  poetry,  etc.  Also  we  speak  of  the  miracles 
of  nature,  the  miracles  ( f  germination,  of  fecundity,  of  light,  of  attrac- 
tion ;  .in  f  ict,  in  this  sense,  as  St.  Augustine  has  remarked,  the  entire 
creation  is  a  universil  miracle.' 


235 

Adele.— "But,  I  i^reeumc,  you  are  not  speaking  now  of  the  miracle 
in  its  strict  jind  jirujier  accei)tation  ?"' 

Doctor. — "No;  we  uro  taking  the  word  miracle  in  its  vague  and 
common  acceptation.  To  make  you  understand  what  is  meant  by  a 
miracle  in  itd  strict  and  proper  sense,  I  want  you  to  observe  that  a 
phenomenoa  or  a  Ecusible  eSect  may  be  supposed  to  be  produced  in 
two  different  ways;  either  by  a  force  which  God  lias  created  among 
tlie  general  forces  of  the  universe  expressly  to  produce  it  or  by  the 
immediate  n:.d  direct  action  cf  God  Himself.  Take  any  natural  faci: 
as  an  instanro  of  the  thecry  ;  let  us  say  a  tree.  We  may  suppose  a  tree 
to  be  able  of  being  produced  in  two  distinci  wa}s  either  by  ihe  forces 
which  God  created,  the  seed,  the  earth,  the  light,  the  heat,  and  so  forth  ; 
or  we  may  suppose  it  to  be  at  once  produced  by  the  direct  and  im- 
mediate action  of  God  Himself." 

Adele.— "I  understand  that  perfectly." 

Doctor. — 'Therefore,  a  sensible  effect  may  be  the  result  either  of  a 
permanent  law,  established  by  the  Creator,  v/hen  He  made  the  uni- 
verse, purposely  to  produce  such  effect ;  or  it  may  be  considered  as  the 
result  of  u  free  derogation  of  the  law  willed  by  the  Lawgiver  Himself. 
Mark  well,  both  of  you,  we  are  not  claiming  now  that  such  a  distinc- 
tion exists,  and  that  theee  two  classes  and  categories  of  facts  are 
tquallyre^'J;  we  are  only  affirming  that  we  can  at  least  perceive  such 
a  distinction,  and  we  can  represent  to  ourselves  these  two  catfgories 
as  being  capable  of  forming  the  whole  complexion  of  contingent  facts. 
Once  you  understand  and  perceive  that  diacinction  you  can  easily 
understand  what  is  meant  by  a  miracle  in  its  strict  sense.  We  call 
miracles  all  the  facts  of  the  second  category,  that  is,  those  facts  which, 
having  the  Creator  Himself  as  their  immediate  cause  and  agent,  ar«^ 
beyond  and  above  natural  forces  and  the  laws  which  govern  them." 

George. — "Then  a  miracle  is  a  sensible  phenomenon  or  fac.. 
effected  immediately  and  directly  by  God  Himself,  and  for  that  reason, 
above  and  beyond  all  natural  forces  and  the  laws  which  govern  these 
forces  ?" 

Doctor. — "Certainly." 

Adele. — "Will  you  please  to  give  me  an  example  ?" 

Doctor, — "We  read  of  St.  Vincent  Ferrer,  that  on  a  certain  occa- 
sion, p:issing  by  a  building  in  the  course  of  construction,  he  saw  a  poor 
workman  fall  from  a  high  scaffold  The  saint  bade  him,  in  the  name 
of  God,  to  stop  from  falling  till  he  got  permission  from  his  superior  to 
help  him.  The  man  was  seen  by  a  crowd  of  people  stopping  in  mid- 
air till  the  saint  returned.    I  see  you  smile,  George." 

George.— The  saint  might  have  helped  him  all  at  once,  and  make 
him  fall  without  breaking  any  bones 

Doctor. — "The  saint,  who  was  a  great  miracle  worker,  had   been 


236 

forbidden  by  his  superior  to  perform  nny  more  miracles  without  per- 
mission. When  he  saw  the  man  falling,  his  charity  prompted  bim  to 
rescue  the  poor  man  from  death  ;  but  suddenly  the  command  of  his 
superior  occurred  to  him,  and  therefore  he  instinctively  bade  the  man 
to  wait  for  him.  When  you  are  a  little  better  acquainted  with  the 
lives  of  the  saicts,  you  will  understand  and  appreciate  that  admirable 
union  of  the  most  heroic  virtues,  which  enabled  them  to  move 
mountains,  couplod  to  a  most  childlike  simplicity  and  unconscious- 
ness of  their  worth,  which  made  them  obedient  as  children  But,  at 
any  rate,  T  am  only  mentioning  the  miracle  as  an  instance  to  illustrate 
my  theory.  You  see,  Adele,  the  suspension  of  that  man  in  mid-air, 
without  any  support  whatever,  is  the  result  of  an  immediate  and 
direct  action  of  God;  it  is  a  phenomenon  which  cannot  be  accounted 
for  by  any  law  of  nature  ;  in  fact  it  is  beyond  and  ahovo  the  laws  of 
nature.  According  to  the  natural  law  of  universal  gravitation  it 
should  have  fallen  to  the  ground,  subject  to  the  laws  of  the  fall  of 
bodies — that  is,  with  a  speed  advancing  as  the  body  comes  near  to  the 
earth,  instead  of  that  body  remained  hanging  without  any  sup- 
port ;  no  law  of  nature  can  do  fiat." 

Adele. — "I  understand  perfectly  what  a  miracle  is  ;  that  is,  a  sen- 
sible fact,  immediately  and  directly  produced  by  God  above  and 
beyond  the  forces  which  act  in  nature  and  the  laws  which  govern 
them." 

Doctor. — "Mark,  then,  every  word  of  the  definition.  A  miracle  is 
a  sensible  phenomenon,  that  is,  a  fact  which  can  be  seen,  handled  by 
everyone  possessed  of  the  faculties  of  the  senses  of  sight  and  of  touch. 
We  insist  on  that,  not  only  to  point  out  the  sensible  nature  )f  the 
facts  we  are  speaking  of,  but  also  in  order  to  distinguish  the  mira- 
cle as  a  direct  and  immediate  eflfect  of  God's  action  from  other  facts 
which  are  also  the  direct  and  immediate  results  of  God's  action, 
but  may  be  spiritual  in  their  nature,  and  therefore  beyond  the 
reach  of  the  senses.  For  instince,  when  God  illumines  by  His  own 
immediate  and  direct  action  the  intellect  of  man  and  inspires  His 
will  with  strength  and  energy,  this  is  also  the  direct  result  of  God's 
action,  and  therefore  beyond  and  above  all  the  forces  of  nature,  yet 
it  is  not,  properly  and  strictly  speaking,  called  a  miracle,  because  it 
is  an  invisible  and  spiritual  phenomenon.  Then,  in  the  second 
place,  this  phenomenon  must  be  beyond  the  re.ach  of  the  forces 
which  act  in  nature  and  of  the  laws  which  govern  them ;  in  other 
words,  it  must  be  such  a  fact,  which,  considering  its  nature  and  all 
the  circumstances  which  surround  it,  cannot  be  efTected  by  any 
natural  force  or  its  laws.  But  observe,  this  may  happen  in  two 
svays." 

Adele.— "How  ?" 


237 

Doctor. — "A  iilienomcnon  may  be  above  and  beyond  the  energy 
of  the  natural  forcra  in  two  ways:  First,  in  itself,  that  iy,  considering 
its  nature  and  substnnce  ;  or,  second,  in  the  manner  of  its  production, 
that  is,  considering  how  and  in  what  manner  it  has  been  effected. 
The  llrst  is  called  a  miracle  of  first  order;  the  other  a  miracle  of 
second  order.  A  dead  man  is  restored  to  life:  it  ig  a  miracle  of  first 
order;  becaiase  it  is  miraculous  in  its  substance  and  in  its  own  na- 
ture, since  no  force  in  nature  can  produce  such  a  result.  A  man  has 
a  limb  smashed;  he  is  cured  instantaneously  and  without  any  aid 
from  medical  art.  This  is  a  miracle  of  the  second  order,  and  as  to 
its  mamer  ;  because,  though  a  fractured  limb  may  naturally  be  cured, 
universal  experience  and  physical  certitude  assure  us  that  nature,  left 
to  itself,  never  repairs  any  injury  in  that  manner,  hence  that  effect  is 
miraculous,  not  as  to  its  nature  and  substance,  but  na  to  its  mode  of 
production." 

George. — "The  way  you  explained  what  a  miracle  is  seems  to  be 
very  easy  and  intelligible;  and  to  smooth  down  diflBculties  which  may 
arise  in  one's  mind  concerning  miracles.  That  there  may  be  a  two- 
fold class  of  facts  or  phenomena,  the  first  the  cfiect  of  the  natural 
forces  which  God  created,  and  the  other  the  eflect  of  His  own  imme- 
diate and  direct  action  outside  and  beyond  the  natural  order  of  things 
is  certainly  easy  to  be  conceived  and  apprehended.  I  suppose  that  is 
the  exact  idea  of  a  miracle  according  to  the  general  doctrine  of  the 
Church  ?' 

Doctor. — "To  be  sure  it  is;  and  to  remove  all  doubts  or  hesitation 
from  you,  I  will  quote  the  words  of  St.  Thomas,  preeminently  the 
Doctor  of  the  Church.  In  his  'Compendium'  against  the  Gentiles  he 
says :  'Only  those  facts  should  simply  be  called  miracles,  which  are 
effected  by  God  outside  of  the  regular  order  of  things.' — 'Ilia  simplici- 
ter  miracula  dicenda  sunt  qwae  divinitus  praeter  servatum  ordinem 
in  rebus  fiunt'  ('Contra  Gemes,'  1,  iii).  Tell  us  now,  George,  every- 
thing which  has  been  said  against  miracles." 

George  —"Iq  the  first  place,  any  number  o.  infidels,  rationalists, 
and  scientists  ridicule  and  laugh  at  the  very  possibility  of  miracles. 
They  maintain,  that  to  suppose  any  fact  orphenomenon  to  proceed  from 
any  but  a  natural  cause  ie  the  height  of  folly  and  absurdity ;  so  that 
some  of  thera  will  not  even  condescend  to  argue  the  question  and 
much  less  to  bring  forward  any  proofs  for  such  alleged  impossibility. 
They  merely  content  themselves  to  affirm  it,  to  take  for  granted  that 
the  thing  is  settled  long  ago  in  the  mind  of  aay  reasonable  man,  and 
that  any  one  believing  otherwise  must  be  a  fool." 

\dele. — "Many  thanks  for  such  liberal  opinion." 

George. — "Then  many  more  go  on  to  say :  Granted  for  a  moment 
that  the  miracle  is  possible,  what  have  ]  ou  gained  by  the  admission  ? 


238 

Why,  a  very  sorry  return  for  your  credulity  and  your  eflForts.  Because 
even  admitting  that  possibility,  it  avails  nothing  for  the  end  for  which 
miracles  have  been  invented." 

Adelc— "Why  ?" 

George. — "Because  a  miracle  can  never  be  ascertained ;  do  what 
you  will,  there  is  no  power  on  earth  or  in  man  to  tell  whether  an 
eEFect  or  phenomenon  is  due  to  a  Divine  sgency  or  to  a  natural 
cause." 

Adele. — "I  see,  though,  of  course,  I  suspect  there  is  a  satisfactory 
answer  to  that." 

Doctor. — "I  rather  think  there  is.     Go  on,  George." 

George. — "Our  scientific  friends  go  a  step  further  in  the  case.  Not 
only  do  they  contend  that  a  mirasle  cannot  be  really  ascertained,  that 
it  is  beyond  man'j  power  to  do  so,  but  they  are  sure  that,  as  a  matter 
of  fact,  no  miracle  has  ever  been  ascertained.  All  the  miracle.- 
spoken  of  in  history  or  in  the  Scriptures,  in  the  Old  and  New  Testa- 
ment, they  consider  as  so  many  fables,  legends  that  could  not  stand 
the  least  superficial  examination  and  scrutiny  of  modern  criticism. 
They  must  vanish  under  the  blazing  light  of  modern  education  and 
progress  as  the  anow  melts  under  the  hot  rays  of  the  sun." 

Doctor. — "You  have  condensed  very  accurately  the  errors  of  the 
enemies  of  miracles,  and  hence  it  appears  evident  how  many  ques- 
tions we  must  discuss  in  order  to  thoroughly  and  completely  sif*;  the 
subject.  The  first  problem,  then,  to  be  raised  is— Are  miracles 
possible?  The  next  is— Can  miracles  be  ascertained?  The  third 
question — As  a  matter  of  fact,  has  any  miracle  really  been  ascertained 
and  acknowledged  as  such  ?  We  shall  have  to  employ  a  whole  con- 
versation on  each  one  of  those  questions  and  we  may  as  well  adjourn 
the  present  interview." 

Adele. — '  I  beg  your  pardon,  uncle,  but  I  have  a  question  which 
must  be  answered.  George  has  said  that  scientists  maintain  that  even 
if  a  miracle  were  admitted  to  be  possible,  it  would  not  promote  the 
object  for  which  they  have  been  invented  Evidently,  of  course,  God 
has  an  object  in  view  when  He  performs  a  miracle.  Now,  I  want  to 
know  what  this  object  may  be." 

Doctor.— "I  am  glad  you  mentioned  it,  for  it  will  give  me  an 
opportunity  to  point  out  the  reason  of  the  animus  of  scientists  against 
the  miracle.  1  will  endeavor  to  explain  that  object  as  clearly  as  pos- 
sible to  facilitate  your  understanding  of  it.  By  that  question  you 
have  raised  the  most  important  problem  that  can  exist  for  man  ;  the 
problem  of  the  intercourse  between  him  and  his  Maker.  God  has 
created  the  universe.  He  has  also  created  man.  He  created  the 
universe,  its  forces,  and  its  laws,  and  the  whole  mundane  order,  to  the 
end  that,  by  all  theee  things,  He  might  speak  to  man  of  His  infinite 


'239 

perfections  and  wondrous  attributes.  And  man,  by  listening  to  this 
voice  of  the  universe,  corned  to  know  somewhat  of  the  inexhaustible 
grandeur  of  his  Maker  The  universe,  then,  is  a  means  of  commu- 
iiication  between  God  and  man  ;  but  it  is  a  very  unsatisfactory  means, 
becauf<e  it  does  not  fill  up  the  chasm  between  the  Creator  and  man, 
nor  does  it  bring  the  two  terms  of  the  communication  really  near 
each  other,  and  much  less  in  contact  with  each  other.  Now,  suppose 
for  a  moment  that  the  Creator  does  really  wish  to  come  in  real,  true, 
kmafide  personal  communication  with  man  ;  and  suppose,  moreover, 
such  a  communication  to  be  possible,  how  is  God  to  make  manifest 
His  real  descent  and  presence  ?  Is  there  any  clear,  undoubted,  infalli- 
ble, unmistakable  means  whereby  we  may  know  that  God  is  at  hand  ? 
Kemember  that  the  usual  and  universal  order  of  nature  cannot  offici- 
ate in  such  capacity,  because,  in  that  case,  it  would  only  be  a  question 
of  the  general,  natural,  usual  communication  between  man  and  the 
Creator  through  the  means  of  His  work,  and  not  a  special  sign  oi  a 
real,  true,  personal  contact.  The  sign,  then,  which  would  manifest  God's 
real  descent  and  presence,  the  infallible  criterion  that  He  would  be  at 
hand  is  the  miracle,  that  is  an  effect  or  phenomenon  above  and  beyond 
the  created  order  of  the  universe,  capable  of  being  accounted  for 
solely  and  exclusively  by  nneans  of  the  Divine  agency.  This,  then,  is 
the  end  of  the  miracle.  On  the  supposition  that  God  wishes  to  enter 
with  His  intelligent  creatures  into  personal  relations  and  contact. 
He  makes  ueeof  a  miracle  to  signify  His  Divine  Presence  and  action, eo 
that  when  men  see  th'e  sign  they  may  exclaim  instinctively  and  natur- 
ally, in  the  words  of  Pharaoh's  magicians :  'The  finger  of  God  is  here.'" 

Adele. — "I  unders:and,  perfectly.  The  aatural  communication 
existing  between  God  and  man  is- not  quite  satisfactory,  because  it  is 
only  a  communication  by  means  of  the  works  of  the  universe;  it  is 
like  corresponding  with  one's  friends  by  the  means  of  some  skillful 
work  of  their  hands,  neither  more  nor  less.  Now,  suppose  God  wants 
to  enter  into  real,  immediate,  true,  personal  relation  and  intercourse 
with  His  intelligent  creatures,  how  will  He  manifest  this  propinquity 
and  presence  so  that  man  may  really  say :  I  know  with  absolute 
certainty  that  God  is  here  ?  The  miracle,  which  can  only  be  the  di- 
rect, immediate  effect  of  God,  officiates  in  the  capacity  of  this  un- 
erring, unmi-^takable  means  of  exhibiting  and  manifesting  God's 
presence." 

Doctor —"The  end,  then,  of  the  miracle,  is  to  manifest  the  pro- 
pinquity, the  advent,  the  presence  of  God,  whenever  He  sees  fit  to  de- 
scend into  personal  communication  and  contact  with  man." 

George. — "But  what  need  is  there  of  a  personal  intercourse  between 
God  and  man,  and  why  should  man  not  be  content  with  that  general, 
distant  communication  with  his  Maker  by  means  of  His  works?" 


240 

Doctor. — "To  give  the  reason  why,  would  carry  us  too  far;  and 
such  investigation  does  not  properly  and  exactly  enter  within  the 
limits  of  our  interview.  All  I  can  tell  you  is,  that  mankind,  at  all 
times,  in  all  places,  in  every  age,  has  not  been  satisfied  with  the  vague, 
meagre,  distant  intercourse  which  it  can  have  with  its  Creator  by 
means  of  His  works.  It  has  wanted  more.  It  has  wanted  to  have  a 
true,  real,  immediate,  personal  relation  with  Him.  This  is  proven  by 
the  general  and  constant  fact  that  mankind,  in  every  age,  in  all  stages, 
of  civilization,  has  always  prayed  and  offered  up  to  God  oblations  ina 
sacrifices,  which  demonstrates  and  puts  in  its  most  brilliant  evidence 
that  mankind  craves  after  a  personal,  immediate  intercourse  with  its 
Creator.  Until  your  scientista  have  explained  satisfactorily  those  two 
universal  facts  of  prayer  and  sacrifices,  we  must  take  for  granted  the 
certainty  not  only  of  the  .possibility,  but  aleo  of  the  reality  of  a 
supernatural,  personal,  immediate  intercourse  between  God  and  man." 


THIRTY- SIXTH  ARTICLE. 

IS  THE   MIRACLE  POSSIBLE  ? 

Adele. — "I  suppose  the  subject  of  our  conversation  to  day  is  the 
possibility  of  miracles  ?" 

Doctor. — "To  be  sure,  and  as  I  want  to  thoroughly  and  completely 
discuss  the  subject,  I  will  begin  by  saying  that  there  are  three  distinct 
classes  of  opponents  of  the  possibility  of  the  miracle.  Pantheists, 
Atheists  and  Deists.  I  presume  you  understand,  Adele,  what  is  meant 
by  those  three  classes  mentioned  ?" 

Adele.— "Not  at  all." 

Doctor.— "George,  please  to  explain." 

George. — "Pantheists  are  those  who  maintain  that  there  does  and 
can  exist  but  one  single  substance,  and  that  everything  which  has  any 
existence  at  all  is  but  the  development  and  the  unfolding  and  the 
modification  of  the  same  identical  substance;  in  other  words,  that 
everything  is  but  the  necessary  and  indispensable  modification  of 
God ;  hence  the  name  Pantheism,  from  pan,  everything,  and  theos, 
God;  everything  is  the  necessary  evolution  of  God.  The  upholders 
of  euch  system  explain  it  in  a  thousand  ways,  but  the  substance  oSall 
the  systems  may  be  declared  as  follows :  there  exists  from  all  eter- 
nity something  absolutely  indefinite,  indeterminate,  vague,  shadowy, 
in  other  words,  infinite;  that  is  to  say,  something  neither  really  exist- 
ing nor  absolutely  nothing,  something  neither  substance  nor  accident, 
neither  singular  noi  universal,  neither  matter  nor  spirit,  because  all 
those  things  imply  some  limit,  boundary,  determination,  and  this 
something  is  infinite.    This  something,  infinitely  vague,  has  an  in- 


241 

atinc'iv  ,  iipceesary,  irrepressible  crHving  iu  ite  bosom  to  become eotue- 
thiug  littiniieand  determinate.  After  numberless  successive  evolu- 
tions and  trials  it  becomes  matter,  as  seen  in  the  inorganic  universe  ; 
then  it  assumes  the  form  of  life  in  the  organic  universe;  afterwards, 
after  many  other  efforts,  it  shoots  into  a  sensitive  life  in  the  animal 
kin«;dom,  and  finally  it  rises  up  to  intellectual  life,  to  thought  in 
man  ;  but  matter,  organic  life,  sensitive  life,  intellectual  life,  are  not 
Boinetbing  really  and  distinctly  existing  but  the  necessary  develop- 
ment and  forms  which  this  Being  Nothing  puts  on  in  the  struggles 
for  development." 

Adele.— "I  see  very  well  how  the  miracle  in  this  system  is  impos- 
sible ;  beciiure,  as  matter  and  the  physical  universe  and  the  laws  wh'ch 
govern  it  a;e  the  necessary,  absolutely  indispensable  unfolding  of  this 
Being- Nothing,  it  is  evident  that  everything  must  happen  in  con- 
stant, absolutely  iron-bound  manner,  and  no  change,  alteration,  or 
exception  is  possible." 

Doctor. — "Very  good,  Adele.  And  you  see,  also,  that  the  miracle 
is  impossible  in  the  system  of  universal  evolution,  because  that  sys- 
tem is  nothing  better  than  Pantheism," 

George. — "Atheism  is  the  system  of  those  who  deny  the  existence 
of  an  infinite,  intelligent  free  Being  who  has  created  the  universe,  but 
who  hold  that  everything  originates  in  one  or  more  blind  forces  of 
that  which  they  call  nature." 

Adele.— "Of  course  the  miracle  is  impossible  in  that  system  as  it 
holds  that  everything  is  done  necessarily  and  blindly." 

Doctor. — "In  the  beginning  of  these  conversations  we  proved  the 
existence  of  an  infinite,  supreme,  intelligent,  free  Cause  and  Principle 
of  the  universe.  Therefore  we  will  pass  by  Pautheism  and  Atheism 
with  that  utter  and  supreme  scorn  which  they  deserve.  Those  two 
systems,  though  so  tenderly  and  fondly  caressed  by  the  scientists  of 
to  day  and  held  in  great  veneration  by  the  agnostics  of  the  present 
tfme,  imply  nothing  less  than  the  utter  annihilation  of  reason,  the 
atrophy  of  all  intellectual  life,  the  actual  extinction  of  all  thought, 
and  should  be  keld  up  to  ridicule  and  execration." 

George. — "Remains  the  system  of  the  Deists,  that  is,  of  those  who 
acknowledge  the  existence  of  a  supreme,  intelligent,  free  Cause  of  the 
universe,  who  has  created  it  and  subjected  it  to  certain  fixed,  immutable 
laws  and  order,  but  who  after  this  can  no  longer  interfere  with  His 
creation." 

Doctor. — "These  also  maintain  the  impossibility  of  miracles,  and 
condescend  to  give  proofs  for  such  alleged  impossibility.  But  before 
we  come  to  them  I  want  to  remark,  that,  in  the  eyes  of  an  honest, 
conscientious,  upright,  dispassionate  reason  there  is  nothing  more 
acceptable  than  the  possibility  of  miracles.    Because,  once  admit  the 


242 

existence  of  a'  supreme,  infinite,  intelligent  free  Cause  who  has 
created  the  universe,  there  is  nothing  more  reasonable  than  that  the 
same  Cause  should  have  the  absolute  and  untrammelled  control  of 
the  same  universe  and  of  the  order  He  set  upon  it ;  and  it  seems 
to  be  the  height  of  folly  and  absurdity  to  suppose  that  an  Infinite 
Power,  wh©  was  able  to  evoke  that  same  universe  from  utter  noth- 
ingness, should  lose  all  control  over  it  a^ter  creating  it,  nay,  that 
it  should  be  iron-bound,  fastened  hand  and  foot  by  the  work  which 
He  has  made  and  the  laws  He  freely  set  upon  Ihem.  This  is  so 
evident  that  even  the  most  celebrated  Deists  have  acknowledged  it. 
Jean  Jacques  Rousseau  wrote  :  'Can  God  perform  miracles  ?  That 
question,  if  seriously  treated,  would  be  impious  if  it  were  not 
absurd.  To  punish  one  who  should  answer  it  negatively  would  be 
doing  him  too  much  honor.    He  should  be  sent  to  a  madhouse.' " 

Adele. — "The  opinion  of  these  gentlemen  is  truly  laughable,  if  it 
were  not  profane.  Why,  it  fcupposes  the  universe  to  say  to  God  :  'It  is 
true  Thou  hast  created  me  from  nothing,  and  many  thanks  for  that ; 
it  is  likewise  true  that  if  Thy  Omnipotent  hand  did  not  upbold  me 
every  moment,  I  should  return  to  that  nothingness  which  presided  at 
my  birth ;  it  is  true  that  I  cannot  undergo  the  least  possible  move- 
ment or  action  without  Thy  own  Omnipotent  aid.  All  that  is  true; 
at  the  same  time  I  must  beg  leave  to  remark  that  Thou  hast  no  nght 
whatever  to  interfere  with  the  laws  and  order  which  it  was  Thy  in- 
finite pleasure  to  set  over  me.  It  is  all  good  enough  that  1  owe  every- 
thing to  Thee,  but  after  all,  too  much  interference  is  too  much.  Please 
to  attend  to  other  things  and  let  me  alone  with  the  laws  and  order 
established  over  me.  They  are  good  enough  for  me.'  Is  this  not  the 
height  of  blasphemy,  profanity  and  absurdity  ?" 

George. — "Bravo,  Miss  Adele  ;  an  argument  loses  nothing  by  your 
handling." 

Doctor. — "But  they  give  reasons  for  their  opinion,  and  we  must 
•  iamine  and  estimate  them  at  their  full  value.  The  first  reason  they 
sive  is,  according  to  them,  out  of  respect  to  God's  immutability  and 
consistency.  God,  they  urge,  has  established  constant,  immutable  laws 
to  preside  over  the  physical  order  of  the  universe;  He  has  chosen 
such  order ;  He  has  willed  it,  and  for  you  to  come  with  the  supposi- 
tion that  He  can  alter,  change,  disturb,  upset,  turn  topsy-turvy  that 
order  and  harmony,  is  to  suppose  that  God  can  change  this  will  and 
His  purpose ;  it  is  to  attribute  to  Him  inconstancy  and  fickleness. 
Therefore  your  opinion  and  not  ours  is  a  profanity  and  absurdity." 

Adele. — "We  must  then  examine  if  it  be  true  that  a  miracle 
argues  a  change  in  God's  will  and  purpose  ?" 

Doctor. — "That  is  our  first  inquiry.  What  do  you  think,  George? 
does  a  miracle  necessarily  imply  a  change  in  the  Creator  ?" 


George. — "I  am  sure  it  cUies  uot.' 

Adele. — "How  do  you  explain  it?" 

George. — "Because  the  miracle  does  not  exhibit  any  of  the  cle 
ments  of  a  change.  When  do  we  say  that  a  man  has  changed  Lis 
mind,  his  purpose,  or  his  action  ?  We  will  take  as  an  example  a  legis- 
lator. Suppose  a  legislator,  after  all  proper  deliberation  and  examina- 
tion, emanates  a  law.  The  law  is  carried  into  effect,  and  instead  of 
procuring  for  the  citizen  and  for  the  public  utility  and  order  that 
advantage  which  the  legislator  intended  and  expected,  it  produces  the 
contrary  effect.  The  legislator  waits  a  sufHcient  time  to  test  it  thor- 
oughly, and  finally,  convinced  of  the  deleterious  effects  of  the  law, 
by  another  act  revokes  and  abolishes  it  and  substitutes  another  law. 
That  is  what  I  call  a  change ;  first,  the  will,  the  purpose,  and  the 
enactment  of  a  certain  act.  Then  the  reconsidering  of  such  an  act, 
and  the  final  determination  to  revoke  such  an  act  and  the  actual 
revocation.  The  legislator  reconsiders  his  act,  and  takes  it  back  and 
substitutes  a  different  act.  That  is  a  change.  Now,  is  that  necessarily 
the  case  as  to  miracles  ?  Certainly  not.  I  see  no  necessity  of  any 
change;  because  the  miracle,  as  I  understand  it  now,  is  the  exception 
to  a  general  rule.  Now  the  exception,  instead  of  implying  a  change 
in  the  general  rule,  only  confirms  and  strengthens  the  rule.  Hence 
the  working  of  a  miracle  is  the  right  which  God  must  necessarily  re- 
serve to  Himself,  of  willing  and  of  performing,  exceptions  by  and  in  the 
same  will  with  which  He  establishes  the  rule.  Let  us  follow  up  the 
example  of  a  legislator.  He  enacts  a  law,  but  at  the  same  time  and 
by  the  same  will  by  which  he  establishes  the  law,  he  wills  all  the 
exceptions  which  he  may  see  fit  to  make  in  future  and  in  given  cases. 
This  power  is  implied  in  the  very  nature  of  a  legislator  or  principle 
of  the  law,  and  it  would  be  absurd  to  ask  that  the  legislator  should 
not  contemplate  it  and  have  it  in  view  when  enacting  law.  Does  it, 
then,  follow  that  when  the  legislator  does  actually  make  an  exception 
tc  the  law  in  a  given  case  he  changes  his  mind  and  his  purpose? 
Does  it  follow  that  his  action  is  open  to  the  charge  of  mutability  and 
fickleness  of  purpose  ?    By  no  manner  of  means." 

Doctor. — "It  is  exactly  the  case  as  to  miracles.  God,  in  establish- 
ing the  general  laws  of  nature  and  the  order  of  the  universe,  by  the 
same  act  and  at  the  same  time  willed  all  the  :xceptions  which  He  saw 
fit  to  make  for  His  own  infinite,  all-wise  ends.  Who  can  accuse  Him 
of  change  and  of  fickleness  of  purpose  ?" 

Adele. — "And  this  end  was,  as  we  said,  to  show  His  actual,  true, 
immediate  presence  to  His  intelligent  creatures  whenever  He  saw  fit. 
Hence,  God  «nacted  all  the  physical  laws  of  nature,  and  made  them 
constant  and  immutable  ;  but  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same  will 
He  ordained  those  occasional  exceptions  which  should   indicate  un- 


244 

mistakably  and  infallibly  His  real  and  immediate  presence  to  His  in- 
telligent creatures.  The  miracle,  therefore,  implies  not  even  the 
shadow  of  change  in  the  Creator." 

Doctor. — "But  our  opponents  allege  a  second  reason  why  the 
miracle  should  be  impossible.    What  is  it,  George  ?" 

George. — "I  suppose  you  allude  to  the  argument  which  they  draw 
from  the  constancy  and  immutability  of  the  laws  of  nature  ?" 

Doctor. — "Exactly." 

George. — "Well,  they  say :  You  will  acknowledge  that  the  laws 
which  govern  the  physical  universe  are  constant  and  immutable. 
That  very  fact  must  exclude  all  possibility  of  a  change,  a  break,  an 
alteration  or  disturbance.  Now,  what  is  the  miracle  but  a  change  and 
a  disturbance,  a  break  in  the  laws  of  nature  ?  Granted,  then,  the  con- 
stancy of  the  physical  laws  governing  the  universe,  the  miracle  is  an 
impossibility." 

Doctor. — "This  argument  is  the  greatest  arm  in  the  hands  of  our 
opponents ;  it  is  believed  to  be  unassailable  and  unanswerable,  and 
yet  it  is  one  of  the  silliest  arguments  which  can  be  brought  forward." 

George. — "How,  d'  *or  ?  I  believe  it  can  be  answered.  At  the 
same  time  I  must  own  +hat  I  have  always  thought  it  to  be  one  of  the 
strongest  against  our  subject." 

Doctor. — "Wheu  we  are  through  with  it  you  will  yourself 
acknowledge  the  truth  of  my  statement.  The  whole  diflSculty  de- 
pends on  the  question:  What  is  meant  by  physical  laws?  What  are 
they  ?  What  is  their  nature  ?  When  we  have  discussed  that  you  will 
siee  the  silliness  of  your  strong  objection.  Your  friends,  the  scientists, 
seem  to  regard  all  the  physical  agents  of  the  universe  as  so  many 
galley-slaves  fastened,  each  one  of  them,  hand  and  feet,  to  a  strong  iron 
chain.  If  one  of  them  is  to  be  liberated  the  chain  must  be  broken  or 
cut  asunder.  They  imagine  each  body  or  natural  agent  to  be  so  bound 
down  to  the  production  of  its  phenomenon  by  the  law  which  governs 
it,  that  if  it  does  not,  the  law  is  broken,  altered,  changed,  disturbed, 
and  sent  to  the  four  winds  of  heaven.  Now,  is  such  the  fact  ?  By  no 
manner  of  means.  Why  ?  Because,  according  to  all  natural  phil- 
osophers, to  all  physicists  of  every  kind,  the  best  and  the  elite  amongst 
these  being  foremost,  it  has  been  demonstrated  that,  what  are  called 
lawh  of  the  physical  universe,  by  no  manner  of  means  exist  in  the 
bodies  or  physicaL  agents." 

Adele. — "I  do^not  apprehend  very  clearly." 

Doctor. — "Let  us  take  an  example — the  law  of  gravitation.  This 
law  implies  that  all  bodies  on  this  earth  gravitate  or  are  drawn  by 
some  hidden  force  to  the  centre  of  the  earth.  This  law  is  universal 
and  applies  to  the  whole  universe.  As  a  stone,  a  pebble,  an  atom  is 
drawn  towards  the  centre  of  the  earth,  so  do  the  planets  in  our  eclar 


system  gravitate  towards  the  sun,  and  so  forth  of  the  other  nystems 
in  the  heavens.  Now,  it  is  acknowledged  by  all  physicists  that 
though  bodies  act  under,  and  are  sulj^'^t  to  this  law,  this  rule  or 
guide  or  force  or  whatever  you  may  ciU  it,  does  not  exist  either  in 
each  single  body  nor  in  the  whole  of  them.  It  is  outside  a  id  inde- 
pendent of  those  agents  which  are  subject  to  it." 

Adele.— "And  what  follows  from  that?" 

Doctor. — "Various  most  important  consequences.  In  the  first 
place,  if  the  law  does  not  exist  or  proceed  from  the  nature  of  the 
body  which  is  subject  to  it,  it  follows  that  if  in  any  given  case  it  is  not 
applied  to  it,  it  does  not  affect  in  the  least  its  nature,  nor  does  any 
violence  to  its  properties.  Secondly,  this  rule  or  mode  of  acting  of 
the  physical  agents,  called  law,  being  really  nothing  else  than  the  idea 
of  it  in  the  mind  of  the  Creator  and  the  will  in  Him  to  have  it  so 
carried  out,  remains  in  its  generality  and  universality  absolutely  th% 
same  immutable,  unchangeable  constant,  when  in  a  given  case  it  is 
not  applied  to  a  certain  physical  agent.  Because,  as  it  is  evident,  the 
law,  as  conceived  in  the  Creator's  mind  and  willed  by  Him  remains 
just  the  same  as  it  was  notwithstanding,  and  in  spite  of  its  non-appli- 
cation in  a  given  special  case.  If  God  does  not  apply,  for  instance,  the 
law  of  gravitation  to  a  certain  body,  does  it  follow  that  He  has  abol- 
ished or  broken  the  general  rule,  that  bodies  should  gravitate  and  be 
drawn  to  larger  bodies  ?" 

Adele. — "I  conceive  perfectly  now.  A  natural  law  is  not  a  chain 
to  which  a  body  is  fastened  in  its  action,  so  that  if  it  does  not  act,  or 
act  in  a  contrary  way,  the  chain  must  be  broken.  A  natural  law  is  that 
mode  or  rule  of  action,  for  bodies  as  it  is  in  the  mind  of  the  Creator, 
and  as  it  is  ordained  by  His  will.  If  an  exception  is  made,  that  is,  if  a 
certain  body  in  a  given  case  fails  to  act,  or  acts  in  a  sense  contrary  to 
the  law,  the  latter  is  not  broken  nor  suspended  nor  abolished ;  be- 
cause that  general  mode  or  norm  or  rule  of  action  for  all  physical 
agents  remains  the  same  unchangeable  and  inviolable  in  the  mind  and 
will  of  the  Creator." 

Doctor.— "Why,  George,  under  man's  actions  and  instruments  all 
physical  laws  are  contravened  millions  of  times  a  day.  Such  is  the 
force  of  the  spirit  over  matter  that  it  can  analjze,  divide  the  forces  of 
nature,  unite  them  in  different  combinations,  and  produce  effects 
which  could  never  be  produced  by  the  various  forces  employed,  effects 
oftentimes  contrary  to  those  which  they  would  naturally  have  brought 
forth.  And  does  that  suspend,  alter,  abolish,  abrogate  any  law  of 
nature?" 

George — "I  am  perfectly  satisfied  that  the  objection  is  a  silly  one. 
But  there  is  another  to  which  we  must  pay  our  respects  now.  It  is 
alleg-rd  that  phyaical  certitude  depends  entirely  on  the  constancy  and 


246 

permanence  of  the  laws  of  the  physical  universe.  To  contravene 
such  laws  is  to  throw  disorder  among  them,  and  consequently  to  cause 
the  whole  fabric  of  physical  certitude  to  totter  and  to  fall.  Once  we 
admit  that  a  physical  law  may  be  suspended  in  a  given  case,  a  doubt 
is  thrown  over  all  cases ;  we  can  no  longer  be  certain  whether  the  law 
has  been  carried  out  or  not  in  all  other  cases.  Hence  we  are  no 
longer  certain  about  the  existence  and  causes  of  physical  phe- 
nomena." 

Doctor. — "Does  or  does  not  man  suspend  the  effects  of  some  physi- 
cal agents  when  he  takes  hold  of  those  forces,  combines  them  with 
others,  and  produces  other  and  oftentimes  contrary  effects  ?  And 
does  that  shake  the  foundation  of  physical  certitude?  Moreover,  I 
will  grant  that  if  the  miracles  became  too  numerous  and  almost  con- 
stant; if  the  exception  became  the  rule,  then  the  objection  would 
•hold ;  because  in  that  case  we  could  no  longer  be  certain  about  the 
causes  of  physical  phenomena.  But  an  exception  in  a  myriad  of  mil- 
lions of  cases  can  only  confirm  the  rule.  A  lame  man  is  made  to  walk, 
a  blind  man  to  see,  a  dead  man  to  rise  up,  at  the  command  of  God. 
Will  all  these  miracles  prevent  the  sun  from  rising  in  the  morning, 
or  to  laying  down  in  the  evening  ?  Will  they  prevent  all  other  natural 
causes  from  going  on,  and  producing  their  natural  result  ?  Assuredly 
not." 

Adele. — "The  miracle,  then,  is  possible  because  it  does  not  imply 
as  alleged,  aay  change  or  mutation  in  God,  since  when  God  estab- 
lished the  laws  of  nature  He  decreed  at  the  same  time  the  exceptions 
He  should  carry  out,  whenever  He  saw  fit,  to  give  evidence  of  His 
immediate  presence  and  to  connect  the  physical  with  the  moral  world. 
The  miracle  is  possible  because  it  does  not  imply  any  violence  to 
physical  forces  or  agents,  as  physical  laws  do  rot  exist  in  bodies,  but 
are  the  rule  of  their  action  as  seen  and  willed  by  the  Creator.  Hence, 
no  law  is  broken  when  a  suspension  of  the  action  of  a  physical  agent, 
in  a  given  case,  occurs  to  make  room  for  God's  immediate  action.  The 
miracle  is  possible  because  it  does  by  no  means  disturb  the  general 
Older  of  nature,  since  it  is  not  so  multiplied  as  to  convert  the  excep- 
tion into  rule  and  the  rule  into  an  exception.  God,  then,  can  descend 
to  establish  personal  communication  and  intercourse  with  His  intelli- 
gent creatures;  and  the  infallible  sign  is  the  miracle  which  bears  on 
his  forehead  the  inscription :  'Deus  ecce  Deus.' 


THIRTY-SEVENTH  ARTICLE. 

CAN   A   MIRACLE   BE   ASCERTAINED? 

George. — "You  have  demonstrated  the  possibility  of  a  miracle,  say 
our  opponents ;  well,  much  good  may  it  do  to  you.    We  are  sure  that 


247 

a  miracle  can  never  be  nsc'ertained  or  found  out  to  be  such.  Conse- 
quently you  have  thrown  away  your  time  in  proving  that  which  is  of 
no  avail  in  the  present  question.  For,  suppose  we  grant  you  that  a 
miracle  is  possible,  you  are  exactly  where  you  were  before  for  all  prac- 
tical purposes;  because  it  is  impossible  to  ascertain  when  a  fact  or 
phenomenon  is  really  a  miracle." 

Adele. — "And  why  cannot  the  miracle  be  ascertained?  I  pre- 
sume your  great  scientists  have  good  reasons  to  be  so  highly 
confident." 

George. — "To  be  sure  they  have." 

Doctor. — 'Before  we  enter  upon  the  discussion  in  downright 
earnest,  I  want  you  to  understand  the  real  state  of  the  qtiestion.  The 
opponents  of  the  miracle  maintain  that  it  is  impossible  to  ascertain, 
to  discover,  to  recognize  a  miracle.  Well,  let  us  at  first  iuquire  where 
this  impossibility  may  be  supposed  to  lie.  Now,  this  injpOKsibility 
may  happen  to  be  in  the  material  fact  and  phenomenon  itself,  as  being 
something  so  strange  and  diflferent  from  other  natural  phenomena  as 
not  to  be  capable  of  being  recognized." 

Adele. — "I  understand." 

Doctor. — "Or  this  impossibility  may  be  found,  not  in  the  real 
nature  of  the  phenomenon,  but  in  the  disposition  of  our  minds  against 
it,  which  is  perfectly  natural  to  a  certain  extent." 

Adele. — "I  don't  understand  that." 

Doctor. — "A  miracle  is  a  pnenomenon  wbich  contravenes  some 
law  of  nature.  The  general  disposition  and  bias  of  our  minds  is  to 
expect  all  natural  agents  to  produce  the  effects  which  tbey  are  in- 
tended to  bring  about.  There  is  in  our  minds,  then,  a  general  predis- 
position to  assume  fer  granted  that  natural  causes  will  always  produce 
their  efiects;  hence,  a  bias  in  the  same  mind  against  anything  strange, 
unusual,  disturbing  or  contravening  the  action  of  natural  agents." 

Adele. —  'I  see ;  the  general  settled  conviction  of  our  minds  that 
natural  agents  will  go  as  they  should,  naturally  creates  a  bias  against 
anything  seemingly  contrary  to  that." 

Doctor.— "Very  good:  finally  this  impossibility  of  ascertaining 
the  miracle  may  fall  on  that  which  really  cause:  the  miracle.  We 
have  said  that  a  miracle  is  an  efiectof  the  direct  aod  immediate  action 
of  God.  Now,  we  may  suppose  that  the  impossibility  of  ascertaining 
a  miracle  may  fall  exactly  on  that;  in  other  words,  it  may  be  out  )f 
our  power  to  really  and  truly  ascertain  that  it  is  God  Who  acta 
and  tot  some  occult  natural  cause.  Briefly,  in  order  to  come  to 
a  conclusion  whether  a  miracle  can  be  ascertained  or  cot,  we  must 
examine  the  following  questions :  First.  Is  the  real  material  make-up  of 
the  miraculous  phenomenon  in  the  way  of  our  ascertaining  its 
miraculous  nature?  8econd  question.   Is  the  natural  bias  which  the 


248 

human  mind  has  against  any  contravention  of  the  regular  usual 
course  of  nature  such  as  not  to  be  capable  of  being  overcome,  so 
that  the  mind  may  be  truly  convinced  of  a  miraculous  event  ?  Third 
question.  Is  it  really  impossible  to  discover  with  certainty  if  a 
phenomenon  proceed  from  the  direct  and  immediate  agency  of  the 
Almighty,  so  as  not  to  be  attributable  to  a  hidden,  unknown  natural 
force  or  law?  These  three  questions  must  be  thoroughly  discussed 
in  order  to  make  out  our  point  that  a  miracle  is  really  and  truly 
capable  of  being  ascertained.    Let  us  begin  from  the  first." 

Adele. — "I  don't  see  any  difficulty  about  the  first  question." 

George. — "Don't  you  ?" 

Adele. — "Certainly  not.  The  question  is :  Is  there  anything  about 
the  material,  sensible  fact  or  its  material  surroundings  which  may  be 
in  the  way  of,  or  form  an  obstacle  to,  our  recognizing  it?  I  say  no; 
for  it  seems  to  me  that  the  material  fact  which  forms  the  ground- 
work of  the  miracle  is  of  the  same  nature  as  any  other  sensible  phe- 
nomenon of  the  universe,  and  therefore  to  be  easily  ascertained  by  the 
same  means  by  which  we  come  to  a  knowledge  of  all  natural  phe- 
nomena." 

Doctor. — "You  are  right,  Adele,  for  a  miraculous  fact  falls  under 
the  observation  of  our  senses  as  every  fact  in  the  universe.  Hence  it 
may  be  seen,  touched  and  handled,  so  to  speak.  An  example  will  put 
the  thing  in  its  boldest  light.  Let  us  suppose  the  resurrection  of  a 
dead  man :  I  have  a  friend ;  I  have  seen  him  a  hundred  times,  a 
thousand  times ;  I  have  conversed  with  him  and  pressed  his  hand. 
Surely  none  would  dream  of  refusing  me  the  power  of  being  able  to 
ascertain  such  fact  and  to  be  certain  of  it.  On  an  evil  day  I  have 
seen  that  same  friend  attacked  by  a  dangerous  sickness  ;  I  have  seen 
him  grow  worse  and  worse,  and  finally  I  have  seen  him  dead.  I  have 
been  present  at  his  last  hour  and  received  his  last  sigh  ;  it  was  useless 
to  indulge  in  any  vain  illusion ;  it  was  useless  to  keep  him  with  me 
for  three  or  four  days  in  the  forlorn  hope  that  his  death  might  be  ap- 
p irent,  that  he  might  be  under  an  attack  of  lethargy;  it  was  of  no 
avail  for  me  to  put  off  the  day  of  burial ;  for  a  horrible  decomposition 
manifested  itself,  so  as  to  preclude  all  possibility  of  doubt  as  to  his 
real  death.  Could  anyone  bo  so  unreasonable  as  to  refuse  me  the 
capacity  and  power  of  ascertaining  this  fact?  Under  the  plea  that  a 
lethargy  may  oftentimes  cause  one  to  appear  dead,  can  anyone  shake 
my  conviction  in  the  certainty  of  death  before  that  body  which  is 
falling  apart  through  putrefaction  and  decay  ?  Here,  then,  are  two 
facts :  My  friend,  once  glowing  with  life,  and  his  certain  death,  which 
can  be  ascertained  and  verified  like  all  other  facts.  Here  is  a  third 
fact:  A  man  comes,  he  offers  prayers  alongside  of  that  corpse,  and  lift- 
ing up  his  eyes  to  heaven,  cries  out:  'Arise,  in  God's  name.'    lam 


249 

present  at  the  scene,  and  I  behold  my  friend  rising  up  full  of  life,  of 
vigor,  of  strength  and  of  force.  'It  is  he,  it  is  he  himself,'  I  exclaim, 
when  I  am  recovered  from  my  astonishmcHt.  'I  see  his  face, 
his  lineaments,  his  carriage,  his  walk.'  Can  anyone  deny  the 
possibility  of  my  ascertaining  and  recognizing  my  old  friend, 
whom  I  have  known  ever  so  long,  since  our  earliest  childhood,  and 
of  speaking  to  him  and  by  touching  him  ask  him  the  question,  "Is  it 
you ?  is  it  you  yourself?'  Now  I  would  beg  to  know,  in  these  three 
different  aspects  of  the  same  miraculous  fact,  what  is  there  invisible, 
impalpable,  problematic,  mysterious  ?  I  have  seen  my  friend  in  life,  I 
have  wept  over  him  dead,  I  have  to  my  great  joy  seen  him  alive  again. 
Upon  which  of  these  three  faces  and  sides  of  the  same  fact  falls  this 
pretended  impossibility  of  my  ascertaining  it  ?  Skepticism,  usurping 
the  name  of  science,  may  come  and  tell  me  lime  and  again  that  I 
cannot  have  seen  my  friend  alive;  that,  perhaps,  I  did  not  and  could 
not  see  him  dead;  that  with  greater  reason  it  is  impossible  that  I  can 
have  seen  him  risen  again.  Skepticism,  I  say,  may  repeat  all  that, 
but  it  can  never  shake  my  conviction  and  my  assurance.  I  know 
what  I  have  seen.  I  affirm  it.  and  if  any  one  refuses  to  grant  me  the 
possibility  of  verifying  that  triple  fact  under  the  pretext  of  the  criti- 
cal science,  I  have  every  right  to  deny  the  possibility  of  the  verifica- 
tion of  any  historical  fact." 

George. — 'I  see,  a  miracle  considered  as  a  sensible,  visible,  palpable 
fact  may  be  ascertained  and  verified.  But  yet  this  will  profit  but  little 
toward  the  conclusion  that  it  is  a  miraculous  fact.  Because,  what- 
ever may  be  the  proofs  which  we  may  appear  to  possess  in  favor  of  the 
existence  of  a  miraculous  fact,  there  is  always  another  certainty 
stronger  and  mightier  against  them  which  annuls  their  force  and 
cogency.  It  is  absolutely  certain  that  a  human  body  in  the  full  pro- 
cess of  decay  and  putrefaction  will  never  rise  again  ;  whatever  proofs 
you  may  allege,  they  must  necessarily  pale  and  be  weakened  before 
that  universal  certitude  and  conviction." 

Doctor. — "You  have  given,  George,  Hume's  argument  against  the 
possibility  of  verifying  a  miracle  in  different  words,  'The  probability 
of  a  miracle,  that  is,  of  a  derogation  to  the  constant  laws  of  nature  is 
much  less  than  the  probability  of  a  deception  in  the  witnesses  who 
afi&rm  that  derogation,  or  miracle.'  Hence  a  miracls  has  in  it^  favor 
not  only  the  minimum  degree  of  probability  but  no  probability  at 
all,  as  it  has  against  it  not  only  the  probability,  but  the  universal  cer- 
tainty of  the  laws  of  nature  remaining  constant  and  unaltered." 

Adele.— "1  think  I  see  the  argument.  You  eay  you  have  seen  a 
miracle,  that  is,  a  derogation  of  the  laws  of  nature.  We  will  suppose 
that  it  is  probable  that  such  is  the  case.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  there 
is  the  constant   universal  conviction  and   certainty  that  the  laws  of 


25U 

nature  are  constant  and  unalterable.  Hence,  this  latter  certainty 
must  necessarily  defeat  and  dissipate  whatever  probability  there  may 
be  in  favor  of  the  exception.  The  argument  seems  to  be  plausible 
enough." 

Doctor. — "It  is  a  pitiful  and  miserable  sophism.  If  we  said  that 
the  existence  of  au  exception  has  only  a  probability  in  its  favor, 
whereas  the  constancy  of  the  order  of  nature  and  its  law  is  certain, 
then  the  probability  would  have  to  yield  to  the  certainty.  But  such 
is  not  the  case.  We  require  a  miracle,  and,  if  you  will,  a  derogaticjn  of 
the  laws  of  nature  in  a  given  case,  to  be  attested  and  supported  by 
such  an  array  of  witnesses,  and  these  of  such  character  as  to  fully 
counterbalance  the  previous  and  universal  certainty  of  the  constancy 
of  the  laws  of  nature,  so  that  we  may  be  as  certain  in  the  supposed 
case  that  the  exception  has  taken  place  as  we  are  certain  of  the  general 
constancy  and  UDaltcrableness  of  the  laws  of  nature.  Hence,  whilst  I 
am  convinced  ox  the  general  constancy  of  the  order  of  nature,  I  remain 
also  convinced  that  in  the  supposed  case  there  has  been  an  exception. 
Sir  Charles  Babbage,  in  his  'Ninth  Bridgewater  Treatise,'  has  handled 
this  objection  in  u  masterly  way,  and  has  triumphantly  and  forever 
disposed  of  it.  He  proves  that,  whatever  may  be  the  probability 
furnished  by  experience  against  the  occurrence  of  a  derogation  to  the 
laws  of  nature,  that  is,  a  miracle,  we  can  always  suppose  a  number  of 
testimonies  large  enough  to  show  the  improbability  of  their  being 
deceived  to  be  greater  than  the  improbability  of  the  occurrence  of  a 
miracle.  In  other  words,  we  can  always  conceive  and  assign  such  a 
number  of  competent  and  independent  witnesses  as  to  render  the  im- 
probability of  their  united  testimony  being  false  much  j^reater  than 
the  improbability  of  the  occurrence  of  the  miracle.  He  has  gone 
further  than  this  and  has  given  figures  which  give  the  sophist  a  most 
solemn  defeat." 

Adele. — "I  am  glad  of  it.  Why !  Given  that  the  certitude  and 
conviction  of  the  laws  of  nature  remaining  always  constant  and  un- 
alterable in  themselves  and  in  their  action,  so  that  we  must  always 
suppose  in  every  case  and  under  every  circumstance  they  have  had 
their  cause  and  fulfillment,  yet  this  antecedent  and  permanent  con- 
viction must  not  be  carried  so  far  as  to  claim  that  if  God  wants  to  pro 
duce  any  exception,  a  derogation.  He  cannot  accumulate  such  a  num- 
ber of  witnesses  and  proofe,  as  iu  spite  of  that  previous  permanent 
conviction,  we  may  not  acquire  another,  much  stronger  conviction,  that 
in  a  certain  case  the  exception  has  really  taken  place." 

George. — "Well,  there  is  no  use  in  wasting  much  more  time  on 
this  difficulty.  Let  us  pass  to  the  real  objection  which  may  be 
urged  against  miraoJes.  You  say, a  miracle  being  contrary  to  the  laws 
of  nature  or  superior  to  them,  must  claim  the  immediate  intervention 


of  God  fcr  its  cause.  But  how  CAn  you  say  that,  without  doubt  or 
hesitation  or  with  any  kind  of  certainty  ?  To  affirm  such  a  thing 
80  positively  and  bo  confidently  you  should  have  a  knowledge  which 
it  ig  impossible  to  attain." 

Adele. — "And  what  is  that  ?" 

George. — "You  should  be  acquainted  neither  more  nor  less  with 
all  the  laws  of  nature  ;  you  should  have  a  perfect,  complete,  full,  ade- 
quate knowledge  of  all  the  laws  of  nature." 

Adele.-"Why  ?" 

George  — "Why  I  How  can  you  possibly  pronounce  in  a  given 
case  that  the  event  is  not  and  cannot  be  the  eflfect  of  a  natural  cause, 
unless  you  knowperfectly  and  distinctly,  and  almost  numerically,  each 
and  every  one  of  the  laws  of  na'.nre  ?  Otherwise,  in  pronouncing  that 
the  given  case  is  not  and  cannot  be  the  effect  of  any  natural  cause, 
some  one  might  say  :  How  do  you  know  but  there  may  not  be  aime  oc- 
cult natural  cause  fully  adequate  to  account  for  the  event— a  cause 
which  you  know  not  of  ?  This  is  the  greatest  objection  against  the  pos- 
sibility of  ever  verifying  a  miracle." 

Doctor. — "The  objection  seems  to  be  very  strong  and  specious, 
but  at  the  bottom  it  is  no  less  flimsy  than  the  other  two,  and  can  be 
broken  as  easily  as  the  web  of  a  spider.  In  the  first  place,  those  who 
allege  it  against  miracles  go  much  further  than  they  suspect  or  wish. 
Because  that  same  objection,  if  true,  puts  an  end  to  all  physical 
sciences." 

George. — "I  don't  see  how,  doctor." 

Doctor. — ^^"Yes,  sir,  you  had  better  look  out.  If  that  difficulty  is 
good  against  us  it  is  as  good  against  you,  for  it  leads  directly  and  logi- 
cally to  the  impossibility  of  verifying  scientifically  a  single  law  of 
nature.  How  do  you  arrive  at  the  knowledge  of  the  laws  of  nature? 
By  observing  a  number  of  phenomena  and  facts.  Thus,  by 
observing  the  tendency  of  all  bodies  to  be  attracted  by  larger  bodies 
you  infer  the  law  of  gravitation.  Very  good  ;  but  if  your  objection  is 
good,  that  to  be  able  to  tell  if  such  a  thipg  is  or  is  not  the  cause  of 
this  phenomenon,  it  is  necessary  to  know  all  the  laws  of  nature,  we 
cannot,  in  any  case,  pronounce  that  such  and  such  a  thing  is  the  cause 
of  that  phenomenon.  For  one  could  say :  You  assign  such  a  cause  for 
that  phenomenon!  How  do  you  know  that  there  is  not  some  other 
cause  with  which  you  are  unacquainted  that  may  account  for  that 
fact?  Do  you  know  each  and  every  law  of  nature  to  affirm  so  confi- 
dently that  your  cause  is  the  real  reason  and  no  other  ?" 

Adele.—" Ah  !  Mr.  George,  you  are  caught.  I  am  glad  to  see  you 
cornered  so  beautifully.  Your  grand  objection  amounts  to  this :  you 
cannot  tell  when  a  natural  law  is  not  the  cause  of  a  fact,  unless  you 
are  acquainted   with   each   and   every   one  of    the   laws   of    nature. 


252 

Very  good.  And  we  retort,  you  cannot  tell  when  a  natural  law  is  the 
cause  of  a  phenomenon,  unless  you  are  familiar  with  each  and  every 
one  of  the  laws  of  nature.  And  if  you  cannot  tell  in  a  single  case  that 
sucU  a  law  is  the  cause  of  such  a  phenomenon  without  knowing  all 
natural  laws,  then,  good- by  to  all  knowledge  of  nature,  good- day  to  all 
physical  sciences." 

George. — "I  hope  you  will  use  your  victory  with  generosity  and 
compassion,  Miss  Adele." 

Doctor. — "If  your  objection  is  true  the  consequence  is  perfectly 
just.  It  would  render  science  impossible.  Still,  science  exists  and 
will  exist  and  produce  irresistible  certainty ;  because  your  objection 
is  false.  Man  knows  that  al^ng  with  laws  of  nature  there  is  harmony 
in  nature;  he  knows  that  God,  Who  never  contradicts  Himself,  has 
not  and  could  not  establish  a  certain  law  in  nature  and  at  the  same 
time  establish  another  in  dirpct  opposition  to  the  former.  Man 
knows  that  when  nature,  as  God  has  created  it,  has  said  yes 
to-day,  it  will  never  say  no  to-morrow.  Upon  that  base  is 
founded  science,  and  upon  that  base  we  establish  the  possi- 
bility of  verifying  a  miracle.  As  in  the  mathematical  world 
there  cannot  be  a  true  formula  in  contradiction  with  another  true 
formula,  so  in  the  physical  world  there  cannot  be  a  real  law  in  contra- 
diction with  anoth(!r  real  law  of  nature.  If  there  is  a  law  rendering 
it  impossible  for  an  organic  body  deprived  of  life  and  in  complete 
decay  and  decomposition  to  return  to  life,  there  cannot  be  in  the  same 
nature  another  law  rendering  it  possible,  otherwise  we  could  be  cer- 
tain of  nothing.  Hence,  mark  the  consequence,  George — in  order  to 
ascertain  whether  a  fact  is  miraculous,  that  is,  originates  iu  the  imme- 
diate action  of  God,  all  that  is  necessary  to  know  is  the  particular  law 
to  which  the  phenomenon  is  naturally  subject,  and  no  more.  If  I 
know  that  particular  law  to  which  that  phenomenon  is  subject,  and 
find  out  that  the  law  does  not  and  cannot  explain  it,  I  have  a  perfect 
right  to  cry  out.  Miracle.  Let  us  give  some  examples.  It  is  demon- 
strated, as  I  have  already  remarked,  that  a  body  left  to  itself  gravitates 
by  its  own  weight  towards  the  centre  of  the  earth :  this  law  is  pro- 
claimed absolute  and  sovereign,  and  we  are  sure  that  no  future  dis- 
covery shall  ever  exhibit  or  show  forth  another,  in  virtue  of  which  a 
body  left  to  itself  on  the  surface  of  the  earth  will  fly  away  from  the 
centre  of  the  earth  instead  of  gravitating  towards  it." 

George. — "Certainly,  we  are  sure  of  that," 

Doctor. — "Very  well,  if  I  see  with  my  own  eyes,  in  full  daylight, 
an  enormous  mass  of  granite  at  once  to  lift  itself  up,  apparently,  by  its 
own  unaided  movement  and  make  its  way  towards  the  sky,  can  I  not 
affirm  with  perfect  certainty  that  that  granite  is  lifted  up  by  a  force 
which  is  beyond  the  sphere  of  physical  agents,  that  is,  by  God  ?    And 


yet  I  do  not  know  each  and  every  one  of  the  laws  of  nature. 
All  I  know  is  that  that  eflbrt  is  contrary  to  the  law  of 
gravitation,  and  can  only  he  produced  by  God.  Again,  it  is 
proven  by  universal  experience  that  an  organism  once  broken  ie 
not  readjusted  instantaneously,  or  by  itself,  that  a  living  body 
once  dead  cannot  be  exempted  from  the  law  of  decay  and  decomposi- 
tion, and  can  never  appear  again  in  life  with  the  identity  of  its  form 
and  substance.  Whatever  wondrous  transformations  may  take  place 
in  nature,  we  are  absolutely  certain  of  this  law,  that  a  body  once  a 
corpse  cannot  in  a  second  reappear,  living  and  radiant  from  the 
bosom  of  its  putrefaction.  If,  then,  a  phenomenon  of  this  nature 
occurs  before  myjeye,  before  the  eyes  of  a  thousand,  of  ten  thousand, 
if  ^c  have  seen  the  dead  body,  if  we  have  handled,  so  to  speak,  its  very 
corruption,  and  if  in  three  minutes  we  see  at  the  prayer  of  a  man  that 
pame  dead  body  to  rise  again,  blooming  with  fresh  life,  and  full  of 
vigor  and  manhood,  have  we  not  a  right  to  exclaim  loudly  that  here  is 
a  miracle  of  the  greatest  magnitude  ?  And  yet  I  am  ignorant  of  all  the 
laws  of  nature.  I  know  only  the  one  which  is  dominant  in  this  case, 
the  law  of  corruption  and  decay,  and  when  I  see  the  very  contrary 
occurring,  I  triumphantly  exclaim  :  the  Omnipotence  of  God  is  here!" 
Adele. — "Yes,  th's  miracle  can  be  ascertained  and  recognized^ 
because  it  is  a  fact  like  all  other  facts,  subject  to  the  observation  of  our 
senses;  it  can  be  seen,  handled,  moved,  like  all  sensible  phenomena. 
It  can  be  ascertained,  because,  though  we  may  have  a  presumption 
always  in  favor  of  the  constancy  of  the  laws  of  nature,  in  spite  of  all 
strange  occurrences,  yet  that  pre-umption  may  be  overcome  by  such 
an  array  of  competent  witnesses  and  proofs,  testifying  in  favor  of  the 
strange  event,  as  to  render  an  error  and  a  deception  in  those  wit- 
nesses much  more  improbable  than  the  occurrence  of  an  exception 
in  the  laws  of  nature.  Finally,  a  miracle  may  be  ascertained  because 
it  appears  clothed  with  God's  glory  and  might,  and  because,  to  dis- 
cover such  a  might,  it  is  not  necessary  to  know  each  and  every  one  of 
the  laws  of  nature,  but  only  that  law  to  which  God,  the  Law- giver,  says : 
'Stand  aside,  I  am  the  Master ;  it  is  I  Who  act ;'  and  the  law,  feeling 
its  Creator,  retires ;  or,  as  I  may  express  it  in  the  words  of  Dryden, 
alluding  to  the  miracle  of  Cana  of  Galilee : 

"  'The  conscious  water  saw  its  Maker  and  blushed.'  " 


THIRTY-EIGHTH  ARTICLE. 

HAS  A  MIRACLE  EVER  BEEN  ASCERTAINED? 

Adele. — "Well,  Mr.  George,  you  ought  to  be  perfectly  eatisfied 
with  the  demonstration  we  gave  in  our  last  interview  ?" 


25i 

George. — "Certainly ;  we  must  own  that  a  miracle  may  be  ascer- 
tained ;  but  that  is  not  sufficient  for  the  triumph  of  our  cause.  We 
must  go  further  and  attack  the  enemy  of  the  miracle  in  his  last 
stronghold." 

Adele. — "And  what  is  that?" 

Doctor. — "Tbey  coolly  tell  you:  No  miracle,  as  a  matter  of  fact, 
has  ever  been  ascertained  or  verified,  so  that  all  your  demonstration  of 
the  possibility  of  miracles,  of  the  possibility  of  ascertaining  them,  is 
so  much  waste  of  time  and  trouble." 

George — "Certainly;  they  claim  that  we  have  no  instance  of  any 
miracle  ever  having  been  examined  under  such  conditions  as  to  fully 
satisfy  a  scientist  that  a  miracle  has  really  taken  place  and  ascertained 
as  such." 

Doctor. — "Very  well,  George.  For  the  sake  of  clearness  I  wish  to 
carry  our  discussion  of  this  subject  in  dramatized  form.  We  will 
suppose  you  to  be  a  scientist,  deputed  by  a  congress  of  scientists,  and 
in  their  name  and  by  their  authority  to  state  the  conditions  to  be  ob- 
served in  the  verification  of  a  miracle,  in  order  that  they  may  pro- 
nounce themselves  satisfied.  Adele  will  be  the  public  and  I  tie 
advocate." 

Adele — 'I  gladly  accept  my  role.'' 

George. — "And  I  agree  to  represent  science,  speaking  through  a 
congress,  and  authoiizing  me  t)  name  those  conditions." 

Doctor — "Weil,  Mr.  Scientist,  will  you  be  so  kind  as  to  state 
clearly  and  distinctly  on  what  conditions  you  would  consider  a 
miracle  as  properly  ascertained  ?  ' 

George. — "State  the  case  and  I  will  name  ibe  conditions." 

Doctor. — "Suppose  the  cace  of  a  man  iifHicted  with  an  incurable 
disease,  say  the  loss  of  an  organ,  and  imagine  that  same  man  to  have 
his  organ  suddenly  restored  to  him,  on  what  conditions  would  you 
consider  tha*;  miracle  as  ascertained  and  proved  beyond  a  doubt  ?" 

George. — "I  should,  in  the  first  place,  require  the  most  unim- 
peachable evidence  proving  that  the  man  was  really  without  the 
ftrgan.  I  should  want  to  put  that  fact  beyond  all  possible  doubt  by 
exacting  a  clear,  full  accurate,  a  detailed  history  of  his  whole  life,  from 
his  birth  to  the  present  moment,  by  investigating  most  scrupulously 
whether  he  was  born  without  that  organ,  or  whether  he  lost  it 
gradually  ly  sickness,  or  suddenly  by  some  accident.  I  would  not 
be  satisfied  with  any  hearsay,  but  should  peremptorily  demand  the 
united  testimony  of  competent  witnesses.  By  competent  witnesses, 
of  course,  I  mean  such  as  are  perfectly  acquainted  with  the  facts,  as 
having  being  placed  in  the  best  possible  opportunity  to  acquire  them, 
and  such  as  would  not  and  could  not  deceive  even  if  they  would." 

Adele. — "You  are  very  exacting." 


Doctor. — ''He  is  not.  I  fully  agree  to  the  conditions,  Mr.  Scientist. 
What  else  would  you  require  ?" 

George. — "If  I  were  told  that  the  misaing  organ  had  suddenly 
been  restored  to  him,  I  should  exact  an  investigation  before  a  most 
solemn  tribunal  of  the  (lite  of  scientific  men  whose  duty  it  should  be, 
first,  to  ascertain  again  the  fact  of  the  missing  organ  by  competent 
witnesses  and  to  put  that  beyond  all  doubt;  second,  to  acertain  how 
and  by  whom  and  in  what  manner  the  organ  had  been  restored  to 
him.  This  should  be  proven  by  an  overwhelming  weight  of  com- 
petent testimony  ;  third,  the  commission  should  thoroughly  and  ex- 
haustively inquire  whether  any  natural  means  had  been  used  to  eflect 
that  restoration,  and  if  it  were  possible  that  the  organ  could  have 
been  restored  by  natural  means;  fourth,  they  should  examine  into 
the  identity  of  the  man  and  prove,  by  unimpeachable  testimony,  that 
the  man  is  the  same  as  the  one  who  had  the  missing  organ,  and  that 
no  impostor  had  been  substituted  in  his  stead." 

Doctor.— "I  consent  again  in  all  these  conditions.  Would  you 
exact  anything  moro?" 

George. — "Yes,  I  should  require  another  instance,  or  a  similar 
case ;  the  same  investigation  gone  over  again,  the  same  or  stronger 
evidence,  and  the  same  verdict.  Then  I  should  say  that  a  miracle  has 
really  been  ascertained  and  verified.  But  when  or  where  has  a  miracle 
been  so  investigated  or  examined  and  its  evidence  sifted  as  I  have 
described  ?' 

Doctor. — "In  countless  cases  and  in  innumerable  instances.  I  will 
take  from  among  the  mass  of  miracles  of  our  holy  religion  one  at 
random.  And  I  am  confident  to  prove  that,  in  that  instance,  all 
your  conditions  were  verified  to  the  letter — the  miracle  of  the  blind 
man.  One  day  as  Jesus  was  passing  by  He  saw  a  man  blind  from 
his  birth,  and  taking  pity  on  him,  spat  on  the  ground  and  made  clay 
of  the  spittle  and  spread  the  clay  upon  his  eyes;  then  said  to  him, 
g )  and  wash  in  the  pool  of  Siloe,  and  the  man  obeyed,  and  washed, 
and  came  back  seeing.  Here  is  the  fact ;  let  us  see  if  your  conditions 
are  fulfilled.    What  is  it  ?" 

Adele. — "The  investigation  into  the  reality  of  his  blindness." 

Doctor.— "There  was  a  two  fold  strict,  accurate,  exact  investigation 
into  that  fact.  The  first  w.is  made  by  the  people.  The  blind  man 
was  a  public  character — a  beggar,  asking  alms  every  day  in  the  public 
place?,  and  waa  perfectly  known  to  everybody.  When  they  saw  him 
restored  to  sight  and  walking  straight  and  erect  without  help,  they 
naturally  wondered,  and  began  to  make  inquiries.  The  neighbors, 
says  the  Gospel,  and  those  who  had  seen  him  before  that  he  was  a  beg- 
gar said— is  this  not  he  that  sat  and  begged  ?  Some  said— this  is  he, 
and  others  said — no,  but  he  is  like  him.    But  the  blind  man  said — I 


Z3t5 

am  he.  They  said— how  were  thy  eyes  opened  ?  He  answered,  that 
Man,  Who  is  called  Jeeils,  made  clay  and  anointed  my  eyes,  and  eaid  to 
me:  Go  to  the  pool  and  wash,  and  I  went,  and  [1  washed,  and  I  see. 
Here  is  the  first  investigation  made  by  the  people  and  the  facts  proved 
by  competent  witnesses." 

Adele. — "But  this  would  not  satisfy  our  scientists.  They  must 
have  a  tribunal  or  commission  of  scientific  men." 

Doctor. — ''They  had  one  in  the  miracle  we  are  examining.  The 
people  brought  him  that  had  been  blind  to  the  Pharisees,  who  were 
doctors  of  the  law  and  the  highest  scientific  tribunal  of  the  nation. 
The  investigation  went  on  as  follows :  The  first  question  they  asked 
the  man  was — How  did  you  receive  the  sight?  He  answered — He  put 
clay  on  my  eyes  and  I  washed  and  I  see.  Upon  this  answer  of  the 
man  a  question  arose  among  the  judges.  Our  Lord  had  healed  the 
man  on  the  Sabbath  day.  ^The  Pharisees,  as  it  is  well  known,  inter- 
preted the  obfccrvance  of  that  day  so  strictly  as  to  allow  no  one  to  do 
the  least  work  on  that  day.  Hence  they  pretended  to  be  scandalized 
at  the  *case  of  the  poor  blind  man.  Some  of  them,  therefore,  cried 
outji  this  man  is  not  cf  God  Who  keepeth  not  the  Sabbath,  but  others 
demurred-and  said — how  can  a  man  that  is  a  sinner  do  such  miracle  ? 
They  agreed  to  hear  the  opinion  of  the  man  himself.  What  sayest 
thou  of  Him  that  hath  opened  thy  eyes  ?  He  promptly  answered — He 
is  a  prophet.  But  the  doctors  would  not  be  satisfied  with  the  alleged 
facts  being  attested  by  the  people  and  by  the  man  who  was  blind. 
Tuey  ordered  the  parents  to  appear  before  them,  and  inquired — Is 
this  your  son  who:you  eay  was  Corn  blind  ?  How,  then,  doth  he  see? 
They  replied:  we  know  that  this  is  our  son,  and  that  he  was  born  blind. 
Here  is  a  confirmation  by  the  most  competent  witnesses  of  the  iden- 
tity of  the  man, 'we  know  that  this  is  our  son,' and,  of  his  blindness 
irom  his  birth, '  and  that  he  was  born  blind.'  To  the  question  of  the 
commission,  how,  then,  doth  he  sse?  they  answer,  'we  know  not,  nor 
who  hath  opened  his  eyes.'  Of  course,  they  had  heard  that  Our  Lord 
had  healed  their  son,  but  would  not  mention  it ;  first,  because  they 
were  afraid  of  the  Jews,  who  had  threatened  to  put  any  one  who  sided 
with  Our  Lord  out  of  the  synagogue;  secondly,  because  they  had  not 
been  eye- witnesses  of  the  miracle.  They  referred  the  judges  to  the 
man  himself,  saying,  ask  our  son ;  he  is  of  age,  he  ought  to  be  able  to 
tell.  The  judges  ordered  the  man  before  them  again,  and  put  him  un- 
der oath,  saying :  Give  glory  to  God;  we  know  that  this  man  is  a  sin- 
ner. The  man  was  very  much  astonished  at  such  a  statement,  but  con- 
tented himself  with  the  answer :  '  If  He  be  a  sinner,  I  know  not ;  one 
thing  I  know  that,  whereas,  I  was  blind,  I  now  see.'  They  commanded 
him  to  tell  his  story  over  again.  What  did  He  do  to  thee?  How  did 
He  open  thy  eyes  ?  He  replied :    I  have  told  you,  and  you  have  heard 


i:57 

it,  why  would  you  bear  it  ag  tin  ?  Will  yvu  uldu  becoino  His  disciples  ? 
They  waxed  angry  aud  begau  to  revilo  him,  Baying,  be  thou  His 
disciple.  Wo  knoTr  that  God  spoke  to  Moses;  but,  as  to  this  Man,  wc 
know  not  from  whence  He  is.  The  suuplc  minded,  honest  man  was 
astonished  at  such  poor  reasoning  of  the  scientists  of  those  days." 

Adele. — "Like  that  of  the  modern  one's,  according  to  the  many 
specimens  we  have  had." 

Doctor. — "And  he  cried  out  aloud  before  all  the  bystanders,  say- 
ing :  why,  herein  is  a  wonderful  thing  :  You  who  ought  to  know 
better,  you  who  are  appointed  to  teach  me,  you  who  claim  to  be 
doctore,  know  not  whence  He  is,  and  yet  He  has  opened  my  eyes. 
We  know*thafc  God  docs  not  hear  sinners ;  bat  if  a  man  is  a  server  i  f 
God. and  doUi  His  will,  him  H  ;  luars.  From  the  beginning  of  the 
world  it  has  not  been  heard  that  any  man  has  opened  the  eyes  of  one 
born  blind." 

Adele. — "Here,  Mr.  George,  we  have  a  miracl^which  fulfills  all  the 
conditions  exacted  by  your  scientists;  investigation  by  the  people; 
investigation  before  the  tribunal  of  doctors,  dead  set  against  Our  Lord ; 
examination  of  competent  witnesses  as  to  the  fact  of  the  misriug 
organ :  examination  and  proof  of  his  identity ;  full  examination  as 
to  how,  when,  under  what  circumetances  he  was  restored  to  sight. 
What  will  you  hcve  more  ?  If  a  fact,  the  event  of  which  scrutinized 
80  strictly,  so  closely,  eo  abundantly,  is  not  proven  and  ascertiiued, 
why,  nothing  can  be  ascertained  i a  this  world,  and  we  may  as  well 
turn  skeptics  outright?"  • 

George. — "But  there  was  no  verdict  by  the  tribunal  ?'' 
•   Adele. — "Let  me  see.    Wad  there  no  verdict  ?    I  don't  jemember 
to  have  seen  a  verdict  when  I  read  the  Gospel  of  St.  John." 

Doctor. — "Yes,  there  was  a  verdict,  but  one  anything  but  credit- 
able to  the  tribunal  which  examined  the  miracle." 

George. — "And  what  was  it,  doctor  ?" 

Doctor. — "Why,  affirmative  of  course;  they  admitted  that  they 
had  nothing  to  say  agsindt  the  miracle." 

George. — "Why,  like  Miss  Adele,  I  don't  remember  that  St.  John 
records  any  verdict  ?'' 

Doctor. — "I  big  your  pardon,  but  he  does.  He  narrates  that  the 
Pharisees,  seeing  themselves  in  the  impossibility  of  denying  the  fact  of 
the  miracle,  and  of  the  consequences  which  the  blind  man  drew  in  sup- 
port of  the  divine  mission  of  Christ,  became  mad  and  had  recourse  to 
violence,  the  argument  of  those  who  have  no  good  rejison  for  their 
action.  'They  answered,'  says  St.  John,  'and  said  to  him.  Thou 
wast  wholly  born  in  sin,  and  dost  thou  teach  us  ?  And  they  cast  him 
out.'    If  that  is  not  a  verdict  much  more  eloquent  than  any  sentence 


258 

they  could  have  formulated  in  favor  of  the  miracle,  I  leave  it  to  all 
fair-minded,  honest  judges," 

Adeie. — "Here  the  French  saying  comes  apropos :  Tu  te  faches  U 
Men  tu  d,  tort.    You  become  angry,  then  you  muat  be  wrong." 

Doctor. — "We  have  quoted  the  miracle  of  the  blind  man  taken  at 
ransom,  but  there  are  other  miracles  in  which  those  conditions,  exacted 
by  scientists,  are  much  better  and  much  more  manifestly  fulfilled. 
Take  the  example  of  the  resurrection  of  Lazarus,  related  :n  chapter 
xi.  The  first  question  is:  Wag  Lazarus  truly  and  really  dead?  How 
is  that  proven  ?  First :  When  Lazarus  falls  sick  his  sisters  sent  word 
to  Our  Lord :  Lord,  behold  he  whom  Thou  lovest  is  sick.  Our  Lord 
for  His  own  divine  plan  heeds  not  the  summons  and  remains  two 
days  in  the  same  place.  Then  He  declares  His  intention  to  Hie  dis 
ciples  to  go  and  see  Lazarus  in  those  words :  Lazarus,  our  friend, 
sleepeth,  but  I  go  that  I  may  awakp  him  out  of  sleep.  Some  disciples 
misunderstood  the  meaning  and  said:  Lord,  if  he  sleep  he  shall 
do  well.  Then  Jesus  said  to  them  .plainly.  Lazarus  h  dead, 
and  I  am  glad  for  your  sakes  that  I  was  not  there  that  you  may  be- 
lieve, but  let  us  go  to  him.  When  Our  Lord  arrived  in  Bethania 
Lazarus  had  been  dead  four  days  and  had  been  already  buried.  Oar 
Lord  stopped  at  some  distance  from  the  house  outside  the  town  and 
sent  a  messenger  to  the  sisters  that  He  had  come.  The  messenger 
found  them  surrounded  by  many  of  the  Jews  who  had  come  to  com- 
fort them  concerning  their  brother.  Martha  ran  to  Our  Lord  and 
oried  out  to  Him :  Lord,  if  thou  hadst  been  here  my  brother  had  not 
died.  But  now  also  I  know  that  whatsoever  Thou  shalt  ask  of  Grod, 
God  will  give  it  Thee.  Jesus  said  to  her :  Thy  brother  shall  rise 
again.  Martha  understood  Him  to  mean  of  the  general  resurrection. 
Then  she  left  and  called  her  sister  Mary  secretly,  and  said  the  Master 
has  come  and  calls  for  thee.  As  soon  as  she  heard  this  she  rose  up 
to  go  to  Our  Lord  Who  was  yet  out  of  the  town.  When  the  Jews  who 
were  with  her  saw  her  rising  up,  they  followed  her,  saying  she  goes  to 
the  grave  to  weep  there.  When  Mary  reached  the  place  where  Jesus 
stood  she  fell  at  His  feet  saying,  like  Martha,  Lord,  if  Thou  hadst 
been  here  my  brother  had  not  died.  Can  the  fact  of  Lazarus'  death 
be  proven  by  stronger  evidence  ?  He  falls  sick,  and  the  news  is  sent 
around;  he  dies,  and,  after  a  few  days,  is  buried;  largo  numbers  of 
friends  continue,  according  to  the  Jewish  custom,  to  visit  the  bereaved 
sisters  to  comfort  thetn.  The  assertion  of  Martha  and  Mary  to  Our 
Lord,  that  if  He  had  been  present,  their  brother  would  not  have  died, 
puts  the  seal  to  the  evidence." 

Adele. — "Everything  seems  to  be  prearranged  to  give  the  fact  the 
utmost  publicity." 

Doctor.— "Our  Lord  said  to  Martha :    Where  have  you  laid  him  ? 


They  said :  come  and  see,  and  all  proceeded  towards  the  grave.  Jesus 
was  weeping  on  the  way ;  and  the  Jews  said— see  how  He  loved  him ;  but 
others  remarked— could  not  He  Who  opened  the  eyes  of  the  man  born 
blind  have  caused  that  this  man  should  not  die?  The  company  arrived 
at  the  grave.  It  was  a  e.ive,  and  a  stone  waa  laid  over  the  opening.  Our 
Lord  ordered  the  stone  to  he  removed,  but  to  reach  the  climax  of  the 
evidence  of  Laz.irus'  deaiL,  Martha  remarks,  Lord,  by  this  time  ho 
stinketh,  for  he  is  now  of  four  days.  Jeans  replied,  did  I  not  say  to 
tuee,  that  if  thou  believe,  thou  shall  see  the  glc  ry  of  God  ?  And  after 
H  short  prayer  He  cried  out  with  a  loud  voice,  Lazarus,  come  forth. 
And  pretseutly  ho  that  had  been  dead  came  forth,  bound  handa  and 
feet  with  winding  bands,  and  his  face  was  bound  about  with  a  napkin. 
Jesus  command td  him  to  be  loosened,  in  order  that  he  might  go  free. 
Can  there  be  anything  better  proven  than  this  miracle  of  the  raising 
up  of  Lazarus  J  rum  the  dead?  anything  better  aacertaiued  than  his 
death?  anything  better  ascertained  than  his  restoration  to  life  in 
public,  in  daylight,  in  the  presence  of  hundreds  of  people,  some  of 
whom  surrendered  all  prejudices  and  believed  in  Christ?  Can  there 
be  anything  belter  attested  than  his  resurrection,  when  we  are  told 
that  some  time  after,  when  the  sisters  of  Lazirus  made  a  supper  for 
Our  Lord,  a  great  multitude  of  Jews  visited  them,  not  for  Jesus'  sake 
only,  but  thai  they  might  see  Lazirue,  whom  He  had  raised  from  the 
dead," 

George. — "Was  the  thing  examined  by  the  doctors  of  the  law  ?" 

Adele. — ''Fie  with  your  doctors  and  your  examination  !" 

Doctor. — "Re  e'.ill,  Adele.  Don't  you  remember  he  represents  our 
friends,  the  scientists  ?  Yes,  George,  tnere  was  an  examination  and  a 
verdict  with  a  vengeance.  Some,  who  had  been  present  at  the  miracle, 
went  to  the  Pharisees  and  told  them  the  things  that  Jesus  had  done. 
The  chief  priests,  therefore,  and  the  Pharisees  gathered  a  council,  and 
in  the  impoaaibility  of  doing  anything  else,  what  verdict  do  you  think 
they  agreed  upon  ?" 

George. — "I  am  sure  I  cannot  remember."' 

Doctor. — "Here  are  the  words:  'What  do  we,  for  this  man  does 
many  miracles  ?' " 

Adele. — "Here  is  a  verdict  with  a  vengeance,  not  only  admitting 
the  miracle  in  question  but  other  miracles." 

Doctor. — "But  what  puts  the  climax  on  the  whole  eaamination, 
what  gives  the  verdict  fn  favor  of  the  miracle  of  the  reeurrecKoa  o? 
Lazarus  its  higheet  bignificance,  is  the  determination  and  resolution 
they  came  to  of  common  accord." 

-Adele. — "Ai-d  wliat  was  that?" 

Doctor — 'Nothing  less  than  to  remove  the  subject  of  the  miracle 
itself.    'The  chief  priests,'  eays  St.  John,  'thought  to  kill  Lazarus,  be- 


L'60 

cause  mar.y  of  Jews,  by  reason  of  bim,  went  away  and  believed  in 
J'^f  us.'    (St.  John,  Ch .  12,  v.  x-xi.)" 

Adele. — "Lazarus  wasaa  stacding,  permanent  proof  and  evidence 
of  the  miracle,  and  no  wonder  they  wanted  to  do  away  with  him." 

Doctor. — "I  have  proved  that  miracles  have  been  ascertained 
under  such  conditions  as  are  exacted  by  scientists.  I  have  done  more 
than  Christianity  or  common  sense  are  bound  to  do,  George.  For,  I 
maintain,  that  to.ascertain  a  miracle,  there  is  no  special  need  of  any 
scientific  commission.  It  is  amply  sufficient  that  it  be  proven 
according  to  all  condition.s  prescribed  by  human  reason  and  common 
sense,  which  are  the  coaimon  patrimony  of  mankind,  and  not  a 
monopoly  belonging  ex  lueively  to  a  set  of  self  appointed  judges  and 
scientists.  It  is  the  height  of  insolence,  of  profanity  and  of  blas- 
phemy for  scientists  to  bet  limita  to  God,  and  to  prescribe  Him  condi- 
tions, whenever  He  condescends  to  speik  to  His  creatures  and  to 
proclaim  His  divine  presence  by  a  miracle.  The  pride  of  Satan  was 
humility  and  modesty  when  compared  to  that  of  the  scientists  of  our 
day.  The  fallen  angel  was  satitficd  to  reign  in  hell  rather  than  to 
serve  in  heaven.  Our  modern  ecieniists  want  to  reign  everywhere,  and 
to  cite  to  their  tribunal  every  action  of  the  Almighty  under  pain  of 
excluding  Him  from  His  creation,  of  cutting  Him  off  and  of  separat- 
ing Him  from  those  whom  He  has  made.  This  id  the  very  climax  of 
insane  pride.'' 

Adele. — "Their  pretensions  amounts  to  this.  They  say  to  the 
Omnipotent:  You  want  to  perform  a  miracle  to  announce  Y^.ur 
presence.  If  You  took  our  advice  You  would  let  Your  creation  alone 
and  allow  the  laws  you  have  appointed  to  remain  undisuirbed.  But 
You  insist  on  performing  a  miracly?  Very  well,  let  it  pass.  How- 
ever, You  must  distinctly  undersUud  that  we  will  not  consider  a 
miracle  as  ascertained  unless  we  examine  it  under  such  conditions  as 
it  shall  please  us  to  exact.  You  must,  therefore,  leave  the  whole  imu- 
ter  in  wur  hands,  and  be  prepared,  not  only  to  aflfurd  proofs  of  Yuur 
action,  but  be  ready,  at  any  moment,  when  we  shall  consider  it  proper 
to  repeat  the  experiment  under  similar  or  dififerent  circumstances  as 
science  may  require.  If  You  are  not  willing  to  submit  to  our  condi- 
tions, why  we  forbid  Your  Omnipotence  from  performing  and  demon- 
strating a  miracle.  This  is  assuredly  the  very  pinnacle  of  conceit  and 
folly,  and  there  are  no  words  in  human  language  to  qualify  or  to 
]]gt)tly  and  adequately  brand  their  impious  (V  -racter." 

Doctor.— "Let  us  have  done,  Adele,  Hum m  science  to  day,  in  a 
great  number  of  its  would-be  representatives,  has  lost  all  faith  in  the 
Infinite  Creator  of  all  things.  It  believes  itself  the  supreme  existence 
and  judge  of  all  things.  No  wonder  that  its  followers  proclaim  an  an- 
tagonism with  Revelation.    The  latter  loudly  proclaims  from  the 


2ei 

rouse  top  I'lut  there  is  a  duality  ol  truths,  i.atural  aad  Bupernatural, 
but  both  of  which  blenJ  toi^ether  and  harnioniae  as  they  proceed 
fxom  oue  supreme  PrincipUi  and  Cause  of  all  things,  God  Almighty, 
the  Omnipotent  and  All  wise  Origin  of  all.  Science  rejects  any  such 
tirst  principle.  It  subatituTs  puro,  naked  nature,  as  iiiierj)reted  by 
itself, :  s  tt  e  origin,  the  caufe,  the  end  of  all  things.  Consequently,  it 
ignorea  anything  »bove  or  beyond  it,  and  must  reject  all  supi  rnatural 
truths,  principle,  existence,  us  contradictory,  as  absurd,  as  iionHcnse,  as 
having  no  place  whatever  in  its  system.  In  all  our  conversations  we 
ha%'e  endeavored  to  establish  that  duality  of  truths  and  orders,  and 
have  pointed  out  its  harmonious  blending,  and  lienco  have  coricluded 
that  true  science  is  not  contradicted  by  Catholic  Truth.  Wc  have 
succeeded,  ami  defy  any  scientist  to  prove  the  contrary.  Mcnnwhile 
it  behooves  us  as  true  Christians  to  ofier  up  fervent*  prayers  to  the 
Father  of  Light,  thu  He  may  er. lighten,  humble,  destroy  that  fearful 
pride  of  the  so  called  scienliHt.-,  that  thpy  mny  see  and  acknowledge 
the  one  true  God  and  Him  Whom  He  sent,  Jesus  Christ,  Our  Blessed 
Lord,  and  they  shall  tmd  out  that  His  divine  action  results  in  a  most 
magnificent  panorama,  made  of  an  immense  number  of  degrees  of 
creatures  and  orders,  one  rising  upon  the  other,  different  from  each 
other,  yet  blending  together,  so  aa  to  form  one  harmonious  whole, 
and  thus  raising  a  sublime  harmony  to  the  honor  and  glory  of  their 
Creator.  With  these^remarks  we  close  our  long,  but,  I  trust,  not  un- 
interesting conversations  on  the  Harmony  between  Scisuce  and 
Religion." 


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